Snakes With Guns
by Adelilah
Summary: Ten years after Rango came to Dirt and saved the town, everything is back to normal. That is until Rango and his deputy Priscilla meets a posse from a faraway town, on the hunt for Rattlesnake-Jakes two siblings. The little sleepy town soon gets caught up in a fight between the three Rattlesnakes, a gang of bountyhunters and a greedy raccoon. Trouble is the least you can call it!
1. Ten years later

**Delilah introduces: RANGO; SNAKES WITH GUNS!... Cheeziest name ever... I really can't come up with someting better o_o... Anyway, please R&R! I want to know if you want me to continue with it :D!**

*** Chapter One ; Three years later ***

Three years have passed since the incident in Dirt. And three years since Rango became the Sheriff of the little town Dirt. And to this day, he had managed to keep both his life and his badge. He was neither the smartest nor the most succesful sheriff Dirt ever had, but the townspeople liked him and some even respected him. Why? Because he was the one who made sure to put and end to mayor Tortoise Johns reign and made the water flow again. And it was said that even Rattlesnake-Jake, the Grim Reaper himself, had some respect for him.  
Some of the people wanted to have Rango as their new mayor, however they were voted down by the rest of the townsfolk, who actually had some sense left. And Rango didn't even want to be mayor in the first place. He was happy as the role as sheriff of Dirt. Because this was an easy job. There weren't much criminality left in Dirt, except for Bad Bill and his roughians, and the occasional drunk who had to be locked in so he didn't cause any harm, especially not to himself.  
Other tahn that, Dirt was a peaceful little town, so Rango usually had more than enough time, which he used to spend either taking a siesta or visiting Beans on her farm.

Plus, he had a deputy who usually took care of some of the work. Priscilla had grown alot, from a little girl who were practically grown up as a baby, to a headstrong young adult who nagged Rango into giving her the post as deputy.  
She were so daedgum proud when she got the deputy-badge from Rango. Too bad she didn't have any other family than her friend Wounded Bird, to show it too. And ofcourse Beans, who had taken care of her ever since she was little.  
She were doing a great job as Rango's assistent. She were as quick with both her double wielding 45. colt revolvers as she were with her head and tounge. Rango couldn't have found any better deputy in the whole west.  
Things had changed for others too. Ambrose had become the new mayor and since the water now were flowing as it used to, things had certainly gone good for everyone. Beans had restored her daddys ranch to its former self, and she had even bought some land that mayor once had bought from other, unfortunate farmers. On top of it all, she had become filthy rich.  
Today, it was Priscilla who were on duty, while Rango were dreaming about him playing the lead role in a broadway musical.  
She sat outside in the shadow and cleaned her revolvers. People didn't like that she had become a woman of the law. That is no work for a girl, they said.  
She looked at her reflection in the cold metal. They could say whatever they wanted, she didn't wan't to ruin her life as a schoolteacher, housewife, farmer or anything like that. She liked action, where things actually happened. You didn't get enough action as a saloon lady or a cooking lady. Sure, being a law enforcer in Dirt weren't too exciting, but it wasn't utterly boring either. Especially not now when Rango was in charge.  
"G'mornin' deputy!" Mr Snuggles said as he marched by. The ragged porcupine were one of them who tought that when Rango was letting Priscilla becoming a deputy was one of his few smart moves.  
"G'mornin' there mr Snuggles!" Priscilla replied and didn't lift her eyes from the gun she was cleaning.

"I've heard that Bad Bill's been actin' up agein'... This time it's some newly wed gerbile couple he won't leave alone" Snuggles said and spit on the ground. "Whaddya say about wakin' mr Sleepin' Beauty up and go see what the commotion's all about?"  
"Yeah..." Priscilla said and returned her weapons to their holster. "This time i wouldn't mind gettin' that creep behind bars once and for all... He's really gettin' me on mah nerves!" She said a bit annoyed and stood up from the chair.  
"You and me both, kiddo" Snuggles said, he tapped his hat at the deputy, said a short "g'bye" and left for the saloon. Priscilla went back into the sheriffs office.  
She found Rango sitting with his boots on the desk and his chair tilted back, enjoying a good sleep with the hat over his eyes and mouth wide open. Snoring louder than the church bells.  
She sighed and lifted his hat from his head, filled the hat with water and gave it back to him. The cold water suddenly hitting his naked head and slowly running down his clothes made him wake up with a screech. He kicked with his feets and managed to flip the chair over. Tough the rough awakening, he was barely conscious as he lied on his back on the wooden floor and stared up on the ceiling. Priscilla came into his line of sight.  
"Rise n' shine, sheriff. I've heard Bad Bill's up to no good again'..." She said and gave him a glass of cactus juice, but he declined. He stood up, took the chair with him and discovered he was wet all over.  
"Great, now i'll have go get new clothes first!" He said and squeezed some water out of his hat.  
"Nah, you'll dry in the sun" she said and shrugged.

"What about my gun? It's also wet!"

"Here, you can borrow one of mine."  
"What if you'll need it later?"  
"Nah, i'll bring the shotgun too"  
"Weren't your runner bad in one leg?"  
"No, he healed up last week!"  
"You really want to go after this guy, dont you?"  
"Yup!"  
Rango sighed. "Fine" he said and gave up, as usual. "Where is Bill hanging around now?"  
"Over at the newly weds, i think they're called Masons"  
"The Maxons?"  
"Yeah, sure. Something like that..." Priscilla said and waved with her paw. "Anyway, i'm gunna go get the runners now. Ya better not be sleepin' when i return!"  
Rango held up a hand. "Cross my heart!"  
Priscilla left Rango and picked up her shotgun on the way out. She walked the short distance to the livery stable and got their road runners, Rango's white one named Excelsior and her brown and black. She haven't given him a name yet, altough she sometimes calls him Birdie.  
When she came back to the office with the runners after her, Rango were on the outside and waited for her. Heavens to betsy, he hadn't go back to sleeping!

********

So whaddya think so far :D? Leave a review so i'll now ^^...  
If anyone is wondering how Priscilla could have grown so much since the movie, well, thats because they're animals. And animals grows faster than humans, however i still wanted them to be young so i've sort of compromised a timeline. So they all aged 10 years during what we the three years. For an example: If Prissy were 8 in the movie, then she would be around the age of 18-19 here, and i've imagined Rango as 20-22 and Beans as 18-20 so that would make them 30-32 and 28-30 years now. And i think Jake is somewhere 30-35 in the movie so he would be 40-45 here. He's getting kinda old then...  
Anyway, i hope you enjoyed it, i've had really fun time researching for this fic :D!

Delilah OUT!


	2. The Snakes Rattle

**Welcome back to chapter two of my other fanfic: Rango: Snakes with Guns :D!  
Thank you for your review, StonecoldAphrodite :D! I feel kinda good about this fic, so i think i'll continue on it ^^...  
Please R&R!**

*** Chapter Two ; The Snakes Rattle ***

However, not until half an hour later they were finally on their way. They had also brought Elgin and Wounded Bird with them.  
The Maxons lived nearby a dried out lake, at the foot of a tall cliff called "the Snakes Rattle", because it looked like the rattle of a huge rattlesnake. To the Snakes Rattle from Dirt would take a couple of hours. If they hurried. Why Bad Bill would choose to cause so much trouble for himself just to harass the couple who lived several miles away made Rango feel suspicious. It just seemed so... weird.

When they finally arrived to the Maxons property, the place first seemed deserted. Rango stepped down from Excelsior to get a closer look. Suddenly someone shot in the ground in front of Rangos feet. He jumped behind a carriage, and the other followed his example and went hiding.  
"Who's out there? I swear, if you don't show yourselves, i'll blast y'all to Kingdom Come!" Someone said from the house and they saw a muzzle of a shotgun gleam in the sunlight. Rango stepped out of his hiding place with his hands in the air.  
"I'm sorry if we're interrupting! I'm sheriff Rango! From Dirt!" He shouted to the house. They seemed to quiet down in the house. And at last the door were opened and two gerbiles stepped out. The male, Jason Maxon, had his left arm in a sling and his head wrapped with a white, clean bandage. He hold the shotgun with his good hand and let it point down to the ground. His spouse, Marianne Maxon, looked scared and scurried behind her husband. Rango waved to his comrades to come out of their hiding places.  
"We've heard Bad Bill and his gang has been troubling you lately?" Rango said. Jason snorted.

"Well yeah, look what he has done to our farm!" Jason said and waved with his hand over the property. The crops had been mangled by someones feets and some of the wooden structures had been torn down.  
"So... Do you know any reason why he might be doing this?" Rango carefully asked.  
"You mean more than trying to get us to leave the farm?" Marianne said and scratched her arm. "He keeps telling us that we have to move, or he'll tear everything down!"  
"Why does he want you to leave?" Rango continued to ask.  
"I think i know why..." Wounded Bird said, and thus answering Rangos question. Everyone turned to the old crow. He started to tell them the tale; "Ya know, there's more to the Snakes Rattle's name than just the shape of it. It is said that a long time ago, there were a feared band of train robbers. And their leader was the feared Clint. Clint was a huge diamond back rattlesnake and one of the most feared outlaws of his time, just like our times Rattlesnake-Jake.

He stored away his treasures in a hidden chamber underneath this cliff. One day however, the rest of his gangmember got tired of only getting a small share of their big trove, so they all teamed up on Clint and managed to defeat him. They tried to force him to reveal the location of the trove, but he refused.

Eventually they had enough and shot him dead. He wasn't going to reveal the treasure anyway. However, the loud bang from the revolver made the mountain crack and the gangmembers were sealed inside by a huge rockslide. Some people say that it was Clints last act of revenge. And at nights, the cliff is said to move and rattle, just like the rattle on Clints tail, to tell people to stay away from his treasure.

And the treasure is still hidden somewhere in the Snakes Rattle. Waiting for someone to find it."  
The others were still quiet even after Wounded Bird stopped talking.  
"Wow, i think i understands why now..." Jason finally said. "And i bet he's afraid we'll meddle in his treasure hunt..."  
"Yeah, and that treasure probably lies on your ground too!" Priscilla said and folded her arms. "Rango, what should we do? Should we wait for Bill to return?" She asked and turned to her companion. Rango tought for a minute.  
"Yeah, i reckon they'd be pretty eager to get the Maxons' outta here lickity split, especially if they're on to the treasure..." Elgin said and licked his drusty whiskers. Jason nodded.  
"They usually come at nightfall and noon, if you'd just hang 'round here 'til nightfall, then we'll help you get those scoundrels!" The young gerbile said and clenched to his shotgun.  
"Sounds fair 'nuff" Priscilla nodded. "Ya don't happen to have a meal cookin'? I'm starved!"  
"I sure do! I was just 'bout to cook up a stew when ya'll came! Feel free to help yourselves." Marianne said and waved to the house.  
"Woah, woah, woah! Hold it! There's several hours left until nightfall! It would be much faster to just surprise them at their hideout now!" Rango said and interrupted them. "Besides, Beans invited me over to her farm on dinner tonight, and i want to endanger myself by missing it!"  
"So, you'd rather risk yer life walking into a possible trap, than coming late for supper?" Jason said confounded.  
"Listen, it's miss Beans we're talking about. One does not simply come late to her place. With the ruffians, i atleast got a shot! You know how women are when they get cranky?" Rango whispered so the ladyfolks didn't hear. Jason nodded silently.  
"I'm not sure were they hide out, to be honest. I only know it's on the northern side of the Snakes Rattle" Jason said and shrugged.  
"Then i guess we'll have to be extra careful then!" Rango said and signed to his, disappointed, comrades to saddle up again.  
"Errm, sheriff Rango..." Jason said as Rango flinged himself on to Excelsior. "Thank's alot for yer help!" Rango smiled and gave Jason a short nod.  
"Just doing my duty, sir. As always" He said and got Excelsior to run in a steady trot. Elgin, Wounded Bird and Priscilla couldn't help but snicker at Rangos words. He was very good at overexagerating sometimes.

*******

You know the drill! Fave and leave a review ;D!  
Anyway, hope you enjoyed! More chapters will be coming soon! I'm in the middle of a writing streak :D!

Delilah OUT! 


	3. The Brother of the Grim Reaper

**Chapter three is here :D! I know i'm out on dangerous water when i'm throwing in OC's, who also has a major involvment to Jake and his past. I only hope i won't regret this later :/... But so far, i actually like these guys... At least they sound good in my head ^^... And you'll know who i'm talking about in just a few minutes ;)!**

*** Chapter Three: The Brother of the Grim Reaper ***

Yep, it was a trap. It was an obvious trap, and yet Rango fell in it.

They arrived at the Snakes Rattle. Everything seemed calm and they soon found the spot where Bill and his thugs were hanging around. There were tons of dynamite and pickaxes, rope, shovels, assorted candy and other things one might need when digging for buried treasure. The only thing missing were Bill himself, and his thugs ofcourse. Rango decided to take the opportunity to look around the camp, despite the warnings from his fellows. The others felt there were no other choice than to follow their fearless (and might i add, stupid) leader.

It didn't took long until they all heard the clicking sounds from someone readying their revolvers and shotguns.

They all hold up their hands and slowly turned around and found themselves face to face with Bad Bill and his gang. With Bill included, there was six of them. Rango smiled nervously.  
"Well, well, well! Whadda've we got 'ere? If it aint the sheriff, and his cute little 'bunch' of morons!" Bill mocked and swept with his gun.  
"B-bad Bill, w-we're here because you have been a-atagonizing the Maxons lately. You are a-also trespassing on their grounds! I-i've got the authority to put you under arrest for violation and destruction of other peoples property!" Rango stuttered with a high pitched voice and kept his eyes on Bills gun. Priscilla almost facepalmed. He wasn't especially impressing.  
"And for bein' a local pain in the fundament!" Priscilla said and let down her hands. Bill waved angrily with his gun at her.

"Up with 'em again, little missy! I want you to keep 'em where i can see 'em!" He grunted. Priscilla raised her hands again with an annoyed eyeroll. He aimed at Rango again.

"You know what? I would think so! You have no idea how long i've waited for this moment! Now, just stand still and this won't be as painful" He said and lightly squeezed the trigger. Rango closed his eyes and waited for the bang that would end his life. He heard a loud bang, but that was it. He opened one of his eyes and saw Bad Bill squirm in pain and held his bleeding hand. His gun layed a couple of inches away. Rango turned around and saw a group of people on roadrunners. One of them held a smoking shotgun and their guns were aimed at the bandits. So were Ergil, Wounded Bird and Priscilla.

The strangers came riding down to them, with their guns still pointed at Bill.  
"Gee, thanks fellas! That was a close one..." Rango said and did a relieved sigh. He knew he had embarrassed himself today. The one who seemed like their leader came forth to shake hands with Rango. Rango noticed the twinkling, silver shining sheriff star on the ruffed prariedogs chest.  
"I am guessing that you would be sheriff Rango from Dirt?" He said with a surprisingly deep voice.

"Yep, that is correct! And you are...?"  
"My name is sheriff Woodrow Call from Diego City." He said. "And this is my posse, we're all from Diego, all except the one on the black runner..." He said and pointed with his thump to the people behind him, who along with Rango's companions were getting the thugs chained up. Rango nodded slowly.

"Wow, Diego City, huh? Thats pretty far away, innit? And if i may ask, who are you... Errm... 'Possing' after?" He asked carefully. Woodrow took out a piece of paper from his jacket and handed it to Rango.  
"We're after this guy... Remind you of anyone?" He said as Rango unfolded the paper. It was a wanted poster, featuring a rattlesnake with evil, glistening eyes and bared fangs. Rango felt a chill down his spine.  
"Y-you are going after Rattlesnake-Jake?" Rango said with his voice a bit higher than he intended to. He harkled. "Eh, i mean, are you going after Rattlesnake-Jake?"  
Woodroow's men laughed. Woodrow himself only smirked.  
"No, we aint stupid..." He said and got the wanted poster back from Rango. "That's his kid brother, Blake" He said and pointed to the text:  
_Wanted;  
Rattlesnake-Blake, AKA Dracula of the West or Poison Toungue_

Dead or Alive  
5000 $ Reward!

Rango whistled. "That's a pretty high reward?" he said. Woodrow nodded and folded the paper again. "What did he do?"  
"You mean apart from the usual? He murdered the mayors daughter, the only beam of light in this dark world." He said and sounded a bit sad. "We all liked her, but Samuel here, the bobcat with one ear, were especially fond of that little lassie" Woodrow said more silent and pointed at a young bobcat who we're sitting on a tall, golden brown, roadrunner. Samuel looked like he had never smiled in his entire life. "Bless her soul... And it was the mayor who arranged this posse, back then the reward were 4000 bucks, but 'cause of his earlier crimes, we decided to higher the prize money on 5000."  
"What has he done more?"  
"Alot! Don't forget this is Jakes halfbrother we're talking about! He has murdered many times before, preferably young women. And he has a tendency to free roadrunners just for fun. He has a weird sense of humour, y'know..."  
"How do you know it's Blake who did it?" Priscilla said and came with Bad Bill dragging behind her runner.  
"Firstly, Blake was in Diego City at that time and disappeared shortly after. And he is the only outlaw out there who kill with his fangs only! He kills his victims by biting them in the neck, that why he's called the Dracula of the West. And he's also pretty famous around the indians. They call him Poison Toungue." Woodrow said. "And poor Isabelle were found with two holes in her neck, and everything prooves that she was killed with rattlesnake poison."  
"Yep, that slimy bastard's in for a hangin'!" A jackrabbit said and came up next to Woodrow. "I've always wanted to know how the heck you hang a snake!"  
"Ah, this is deputy Augustus McCrae. My friend and long time companion." Woodrow said and introduced the jackrabbit. Augustus nodded and touched the brim of his hat. Rango nodded back.

"And according to people around here, they said they've seen Rattlesnake-Blake coming this way, along with his big sister Jolene. I bet they're trying to find their big brother!"  
Rango flinched. "Wha-what? Are you saying the rattlesnakes got a sister too?"  
"Eyup! She and Blake are really close! She maight not be a passionate murderer like 'er brothers, but she aint exactly one of Gods angels either!" Augustus said and spat on the ground. "She's manupilative and a faster shooter than her brothers"

"And not to mention she's a bit over protective when it comes to her brothers, and children!" Woodrow continued. "She tries kills anyone who points a gun at any of her brothers, and sometimes she succeeds too!" Woodrow leaned to Augustus. "Remember when that lacota halvbreed tried to accuse Blake for cheating in poker? Jolene blasted that poor guys crotch to smithereens! Poor bastard, he had been screaming forever until he finally died!"  
"Yeah, i was 'bout to finish him mahself just to end that infernal noise!" The jackrabbit laughed and scratched his ear. Rango swallowed nervously and one hand unwillingly sneaked down to protect his precious parts.  
"Jolene also has a bounty on her head, but she somehow always manage to find and sneak through loopholes the law system. But when there's no loophole, she... puts her female talents to use instead."  
Woodroow said and sighed. Augustus snorted out a laugh. "At least we know where we've got Jake, he is a mercenary from hell and lets the money steer, but his kid siblings... They're unpredictable! And does whatever they please. They're plain dangerous! But not as dangerous as Jake if he were to know that we are after his little brother." Woodrow sat straighter up in the saddle. "And now, we're hoping to catch at least Blake, before any of them can reach Jake. The Dracula of the West and Fast Shooting Jolene are bad enough, we really don't want to have to face the Grim Reaper too..."

*******

Alright! Thanks for reading the third chapter :D! And now i've FINALLY introduced the Rattlesnake family to you readers :D! I hope you'll like them when they appear later on! Don't worry, Woodroow is exaggerating a bit when it comes to their skills... I think ;)  
Oh, and i'll give bonus points to anyone who knows where the characters Woodrow Call and Augustus McCrae comes from ;D!  
Anyway, next chapter will be out soon :D! Stay tuned!

Delilah OUT!


	4. The Stranger In Black

**Wow, it feels like i'm just sneezing these chapters out :D! I don't know why, but it feels like the story is writing itself, i think this will be my finest creation yet ^^!  
Oh, and if anyone is wondering: the Rattlesnakes will soon appear ;), not in this chapter, but soon... Very soon... And i also want to apologize if Woodrow's describtion of the Rattlesnakes were messed up... I've read through my last chapter and i hardly understood what it said myself :o... Don't worry, i'll try to rewrite that part as soon as possible ^^  
Anyway, enjoy! And thank you for your awesome reviews :D, they are really helping me to keep my motivation up ;)**

*** Chapter Four ; The Stranger In Black ***

Woodrow Call and his posse got offered to stay a couple of days in Dirt. To rest and restock on equipment. But Woodrow declined.

However, he would come with them to restock and to get new runners, as their were getting worn out. They didn't have time to rest, since the Rattlesnakes already had a big lead.

So they joined with Rango, Priscilla, Wounded Bird and Ergil back to the town of Dirt. On the way there, Rango took a closer look at the black clad wanderer who had followed them. He didn't say much about himself, he didn't say much at all! What he had told Woodrow and the others, were that he was just a nobody, seeking his fortune on the open prairie, and he wanted to come with them and punish the wrong doers for what he did to the girl. It was hard to see his face, since he wore a black hat that covered most of his face and he wore a dark scarf pretty high up, so it was impossible to sort out any facial features. He was wearing mostly black, and a dark red and brown poncho. And ofcourse he rode a black roadrunner. The epithome of mystery. But the only thing Rango could see that might give some hints about who he was, was a long, thin, olive green lizardstail and finlike crests on his head and tail. He was some sort of lizard? Rango gave up guessing after a while.

The first thing they did when entering the town, was throwing Bad Bill and his gang in the prisoncells. Bad Bill clenched the bars and growled silently as he followed sheriff Rango with his eyes. Why did those Diego City guys have to show up? Just when Bill were about to do what he has dreamed about for three years: to end Rangos miserable life. But noo, a posse from a town far, far away conveniently strolled past by and just had to meddle in their business. Bill snorted. No sweat. He was going to get out of here within a few days, he could just think of a new strategy and lure the blockhead into a new trap, and to be honest: it really wasn't that hard!

"Cute lil' town ya've got here..." Augustus said and watched as Samuel and three others went to pick out eight new runners, six for each one in the posse and two to carry the equipment. "We heard you've dealt with Rattlesnake-Jake in the past?"  
"Yeah, apparently our last mayor hired Jake whenever he needed someone to do the dirtywork" Rango said and crossed his arms, taking the "badass sheriff" stance.  
"So, you really are that One-Bullet-Rango fella, raight?" Augustus turned to Rango and one of the corners of his lips turned up. Rango lost the stance.  
"Eh? W-what did you say?" Rango stuttered. Augustus laughed.  
"Ya didn't know? The sheriff of Dirt, aka One-Bullet-Rango. Known for taking care of his business with one single bullet! Heard ya killed a hawk with one bullet. And not to mention the Jenkins brothers!" Augustus said and gave Rango a nudge in the ribs with his elbow.  
"Oh, yeah.. Um, well the Jenkins brothers!.. I.." Rango slurred. Augustus laughed again and walked away to help Woodrow to strap the equipment on the roadrunners. Priscilla giggled at Rango, who gave her a faked butthurt look.  
Suddenly Rango felt someone watching him. He looked around and noticed the lizard in black. When he saw that Rango noticed him, he came walking towards him. Rango felt uneasy in the mysterious reptilians presence. He didn't like this guy, there was something... Odd, about him...

"So, you claim to have killed the Jenkins brothers with one bullet, huh?" He asked, with one hand on the hip. Rango were stunned and unable to respond immediatly. This was the first time he had heard the stranger talk. His voice was lighter than Rango had imagined and he sounded very young. Yet, his voice had a cold sting in it, which sent chills down Rangos spine.  
"Oh well, will you look at that! I think my runner is trying to get loose!" Rango said to skip the subject and started to walk up to Excelsior, who were dozing off in the downgoing sun. "I'll be right back! Hey, Excelsior! Heel! Stay!"

"Then you wouldn't mind me asking, Rango..." The lizard in black continued. Rango stopped and were standing still, with his back against the stranger. "How exactly did ya do it?"  
Rango put on his pokerface and turned around. He put on a huge, reasurring grin "I am glad you asked, my friend! You better listen up, because this is where it gets..." He started to say, but where interrupted by the stranger; Who, quick as lightning, had unsheathed a long, thin dagger from his belt and pressed it against Rangos throat.

"... complicated..." Rango squeaked.  
"Listen, ya big, lopsided nincampoop. If ya keep lying to people like that, ya'll get hurt one day. I know who it really was who killed the Jenkins brothers..." The stranger in black hissed. Suddenly they heard a click from a gun turned around to see Priscilla aiming one of her six-shooters at the lizard in black.

"Nothin' personal, stranger. But nobody threatens our sheriff. Nobody..." Priscilla said with a low voice and kept her gaze focused on the stranger. The stranger looked surprised at first, but then he smiled. He turned to Rango again.

"You're lucky little missy here came to save ya... She's got more guts than you!" The stranger mocked and withdrew his weapon and put it back in his belt. Rango swallowed nervously.  
"T-then, who do you say killed them Jenkins brothers?" Rango said and rubbed his throat. The stranger didn't answer, his smile just grew wider and then he left. Rango sighed and turned to Priscilla.  
"Thanks, little sister..." Rango said and nodded to her.  
"Don't mention it, sheriff... Ever" Priscilla said and returned her gun to its holster and went back inside the sheriffs office.  
Rango looked down on the ground. He felt ashamed. The stranger were right, even a mousegirl had more guts than him... Perhaps, he didn't fit as the sheriff of Dirt after all?  
"Sheriff Rango!" He heard Woodrow call for him and he turned to face the sheriff from Diego City. Woodrow came to thank him for his and the towns hospitality.  
"Sure! No problem, we're just happy to help out!" Rango said and shoved his tumbs in his belt and started rocking back and forth on his heels.  
"Oh, and if you should recieve any news on those darn rattlesnakes, could you kindly inform us about it?" Woodrow asked and swinged himself up on the back of a longlegged, brownish runner.  
"We'll sure do, sheriff." Promised Rango. The two sheriffs shook hands before one of the left with his posse. Rango stayed and watched as the posse grew smaller and smaller in the far.  
Rango smiled, content with himself. He didn't care if that snotty stranger thought he was wimpy. After all, he helped saving a whole town, he met the Spirit of the West, got acknowledged by someone who was probably ten times as known, and feared, as him and most importantly: he found out who he really was. He had found his true call, out here in a small town called Dirt. And no one could change that! ****

And there ya go: chapter four! I had quite the trouble finding out a name for this chapter, but since the cliché lizard in black clothes is pretty active, i figured i'd name it after him ^^...  
And if you read the MLP fic too, you'll know that from now on, i'll publish every new Rango chapter on Thursdays, while MLP will be out on Tuesdays :D!.. Or, at least i'll try to follow the deadlines ^^"... I'm pretty bad at those things...  
Anyway, next chapter is out on next thursday (hopefully), see ya then :D!

Delilah OUT!


	5. Barfights and Fancy Dinners

**Hey there guys :D! Or as we say in Sweden: Tjabba tjena mittbena!... Okay, maybe we dont, since thats a very nerdy expression xD... A simple "Hejsan" use to be enough...  
Anyway, back to the subject:**

**Here's the next chapter :D! Wow, these deadlines are quite handy, since i haven't only got more time to write the chapters, i've also got time to read them through extra carefully before submitting them, thus allowing me to make some changes if necessary :D! I know i could've done it before too, but i wanted to submit these chapters as fast as possible, not wanting to keep you guys hanging ^^...**

*** Chapter Five: Barfights And Fancy Dinners *** 

Then, Rango remember that he was late for the dinner at Beans place. He hurried to fetch Excelsior, and called out for Priscilla. She stuck her head out of the door.

"I really have to leave now, don't wanna keep Beans waiting too long. I trust you to keep an eye on the town while i'm away?" He said while swinging up into the saddle. Priscilla did a salute and went back inside to fetch her equipment for the nightly patrol through town.

Rango turned Excelsior around and hurried as fast as he could to Beans ranch.

When he finally arrived, it was dark and Beans stood with her hands at her hips in the doorway.

"You are late, mister" She said with a threatening voice.

"Hello Beans! What a nice weather we had today, right? Mmm! The dinner smells delicious!" Rango said, avoiding the subject, hurried inside and gave Beans a peck on the cheek.

"The dinner is cold by now" She said and folded her arms. Rango smiled nervously.

"I'm sorry Beanie, but we went after Bad Bill today, and..." Rango said and started to explain why he were late. "And we met sheriff Woodrow Call on a posse from Diego City."

"Really?" She asked a bit sceptically. "And who could he possibly be chasin' all the way out here?"

"Well, they were after Rattlesnake-Blake, Jakes little brother y'know?" Rango said. Beans eyes widened. "He and his sister apparently went this way, and they're trying to reach Jake. Wherever he could be..."

"The Rattlesnakes are here? All three of 'em?"

"Erm, yeah... Y-you've heard of his siblings too?"

Beans sighed and shook her head. "And if they've got people after them... If Jake finds that out, he will kill everyone from Diego City! And what if he finds out that they came through Dirt? What if he decides to go on a murder spree here in our town too?"

Rango shook his head and laid a comforting arm around her shoulders.

"Don't worry Beans, that won't happen! And if it does, he'll have to go through me first!"

"That won't be hard..." She mumbled and rolled her eyes.

"What was that?" Rango wondered.

"I said, lets go inside and eat already!" Beans hurried to say and gave Rango a smooch on the cheek.

"Marvellous idea, Beans! I'm starving!" Rango cheered and went inside.

Priscilla went on her nightly patrol through Dirt. The sun had set and she didn't expect Rango back anytime soon, or tonight anyway. Everyone had gone home and were probably lying in their beds, awaiting Mr Sandman. The only place that proofed there was life in Dirt were the saloon.

She decided to go there, just to check so that everything were good.

Just as she stepped inside through the swinging doors, she were forced to duck for a flying bottle. She drew her guns immediatly.

"What going on here?" She shouted and took everyone with surprise.  
People were fighting EVERYWHERE! On the tables, the bardesk, in the chandelier... Or at least, they used to. As soon as Priscilla announced her arrival, everyone paused and the place became quiet. The silence were temporarily broken by Waffles who, in his astonishment, dropped a bottle on Spoons head. The bottle broke, Spoons had a thick head.

"Sorry 'bout that!" The horntoad excused. Spoons growled something in return and raised his spoons to hit Waffles in the head.

"I said; WHATS going on here!" Priscilla repeated and took a step forward . Everyone else took a step backwards.

"He started it!" Everyone said and pointed at each other. When they realized everyone were pointing at each other, they started to look around for someone.

"Hey, where did he go?"

"Didn't you hit him in the head awhile ago?"

"Yea, i tought i knocked him out!"

"That bastard must have sneaked out!"

"Where in tarnation did he go then?"

"If i knew, i wouldn't be standing here looking like you, would i?"

"Who?" Priscilla interrupted the commotion.

"We dunno... A stranger, a really spooky fellah! He started talking bullshit 'bout our sheriff!" Spoons said and shrugged,

"Hey, some of those things he said actually were true!" Someone from the pile of people said.

"Hey! Take that back ya bufoon! Nobody's talkin' crap 'bout our sheriff Rango!" Somebody else said.

And thus, another fight broke out. Priscilla shook her head, sighed and withdrew her weapons. She walked up to the bardesk.

"Buford, a big one..." She murmured to the barkeeper. Buford hurried to pour a glass of cactus juice to her, which she drank in one sweep.

No one noticed the two shady characters who sneaked out through the back door. Anyone who saw them only thought it was Bonnie with another customer, trying to get away from the ruckus to get some privacy.

That night, Rango were sleeping over at Beans ranch. They had been eating and laughing together for hours and truth to be told, some alchohol had also been consumed.

Early the next morning, both Rango and Beans were awaken by Spoons, calling out for Rango.

Rango's head popped out of a window on the second floor.

"Whattishitnow?" Rango slurred and managed to place his hat on his head, after missing and trying to put it on his face.

"Sheriff Rango! Y-you must come back to Dirt now! Quick! T-theres... errm... You better come se for yourself!" Spoons shouted, he sounded like he was exhausted.

"Can't i at least have my morning cofee first?" Rango asked and turned around to look for his pants.

"They're on the chair in front of you..." Beans moaned sleepily and pulled the pillow over her head.

Rango found his pants and put them on.

"Preferably not! Priscilla sent me, she wants you to come as fast as you can!"

Rango mumbled something.

"I'll come with you... I've gat business to do in Dirt anyway..." Beans yawned and sat up on the bed. Rango covered his eyes and sneaked out of the room with the rest of his clothes in his hands.

He got dressed and stepped outside. Spoons jumped off his runner and tied it to a rail.

"Listen, Beans comes with us too so no matter if you like it or not, we'll just have to wait for her to get ready. How about some coffee while we wait?" Rango suggested.

"Y'know, i don't really care but Priss does. Y'know how she gets?" Spoons said and smiled a toothless smile. "An' schoo, coffee would be might' fine right now!"

Rango waved to Spoons to come with him into the house.

"Oh, and by the way, what happened?" Rango decided to ask while they stepped inside.

"Well, there has been a murder an'..." Spoons started. Rango turned quickly around and interrupted him.

"A murder? In my town?"

*******

Dadum! A murder eh? Well, y'all just have to wait for the next chapter x3... Which hopefully won't be late as this weeks MLP chapter was...

**Anyway, leave a review and tell me what ya think :D!**

Delilah OUT!


	6. Murder In Dirt!

**Howdy, time for the next chapter :D! Thanx for rewieving my story, StonecoldAphrodite, it feels good to know that my work is appreciated ^^. And yes, ending with a cliffy is evil *mwahahahaha*, but the good thing with a cliffhanger is that it will leave you wanting for more, amirite C:?**

**And i think you've noticed that i've done some changes to the intro and changed the second genre to crime instead of adventure, i just felt that it feels more like a crime story than an adventure one. Plus i noticed i gave away pretty much in the intro so i changed it to be more... mystifying C:... Enjoy ~**

***** Chapter Six: Murder in Dirt! *****

Almost an hour later, Beans were finally done with her dressing. And to not waste anymore time, Rango and Spoons offered to strap her hog to the wagon, while she packed whatever she would need for her business in Dirt.

From the moment Spoons arrived at the farm, to they finally were out on the road, had taken exactly an hour and fifteen minutes. Rango had been counting.

"Can you tell me more about the murder, Spoons?" Rango asked as they were riding over the prairie.

"Its Bonnie, ya know the saloongirl? She was found in an alley by Sergeant Turley." Spoons said. "That all i know, sorry sheriff!"

"Bonnie? The fat one?" Rango asked as he was searching in his memory.

"What? No! Thats Delilah **(… There's nothing more awkward than writing about someone with the same name as you...)**! Bonnie is that fennec, Delilah's friend..." Spoons sighed. "Poor Delilah, from what i've heard, she has been sitting on her room all morning and cried..."

"Oh..." Was all that Rango could say. He felt sorry both for Delilah and Bonnie. And he made a silent promise to them both, that he would find whoever responsible for Bonnies death and make sure he/she/it gets put to justice!

As soon as they entered Dirt, Priscilla came striding to them with long, angry steps and she frowned at them.

"I thought i told you to fetch him as fast as possible, Spoons!" She murmured and put her hands on her sides. "Sheriff Rango! You were taking so long time that we now have to store her carcass over at Docs place! She was starting to reek..." Priscilla lifted an invisible eyebrow. "You do know what happened, right?"

Rango nodded and stepped down from Excelsiors back and tied him to the rails outside the sheriffs office.

"We don't happen to have any witnesses?" Rango asked and followed her to the remains of Bonnie Fennec.

Priscilla gave up a halfhearted laugh. "If we only were so lucky... The only one who saw Bonnie before she disappeared was Delilah. But she is so torned up she won't stop crying!"

"What about Sergeant Turley? He was the one who found her?"

"Yeah, but he found her by accident. He was really drunk when he was thrown out from the saloon. By me as a matter of fact. But anyway, he says a wind took his hat and blew it into the alley, where he stumbled on something, fell to the ground and managed to fall asleep while trying to get up. When he woke up early this morning, he noticed that what made him fall was Bonnies cold, lifeless corpse. He told us as fast as possible and we've been waiting for you all this time..." Priscilla folded her arms. "Whats your excuse this time?"

"Actually, if i were to blame anyone, i'd have to say Beans were pretty slow this morning, took almost an hour for her to get dressed y'know!" Rango said quietly so Beans didn't hear him. However she wouldn't have heard him even if he spoke up since she was heading off to Fergus to sell him some crops and buy new equipment.

Priscilla rolled her eyes and sighed. "Blaming the lady... And you call yourself a gentleman?"

But before Rango could answer, Priss held up the door for him and signed for him to walk into the Docs office.

Rango silently went inside the building. Doc himself sat on a chair infront of his desk and studied the contents of an empty glass. And it seemed to be amusing him. Perhaps he wasn't 100% sober.

"Doc?" Rango asked and Doc looked up from the glass.

"Sheriff..." Doc said and nodded. He sounded pretty sober. Perhaps he was at least 40% sober after all.

"So, i'm here to, eh, look at the body... Y'know, investigating and stuff!" Rango said and made a skev smile.

"Yeah... I inveschtigated the body for a while ago, and dischcovered somethin'... worrying..." He slurred.

Okay, 30% sober.

A while ago? So whatever he found must have worried him so much he began to empty a bottle of cactus juice? That didn't sound good.

Doc got up from his chair, swayed a bit, before he walked over to a door. He signed to Rango and Priscilla to follow him, and so they did.

They entered a new room. It was a bit bigger than the office and had a lot of tables and shelves. The shelves were filled with medical book and most tables contained bottles of undefined liquids, but there were some with medical instruments laying here and there on them. Some instruments looked normal, but others just looked like gruesome torture devices. And all of them needed to be cleaned. A.S.A.P.

And on one big table in the middle were a body covered with a blanket.

Rango gulped. "So, this is Bonnie, huh?" he asked, fully aware of the stupidity of the question.

Doc nodded and tried to swig the glass, but he discovered that it still were empty so he put it on one of the tables. He walked over to the corpse and ripped of the blanket.

Bonnie had died with her face forever stuck in a grimace of terror and pain. And she seemed... swollen? It was awful to see.

"So, what was it that you found, Doc?" Priscilla asked and turned him. The one eared jackrabbit grabbed Bonnies left arm and managed to bend it so everyone in the room could see the two marks on her shoulder. They looked just like bite marks after a pair of enormous fangs and the area around them were swollen, dark red and purple. And not to mention the awful smell that were oozing from the wounds.

"W-what are those?" Rango stuttered. Honestly, he didn't want to know.

Doc harkled before answering Rango's question: "Bitemarks... bitemarks from a Rattlesnake... And all the symptoms she have are signs of Rattlesnake poison"

Rango and Priscilla looked at each other. They both knew what the other was thinking; "Blake!"

*******

Yep, that's it for this chapter ^^. 

**Since i wasn't sure what the saloon ladies names are, i just took a wild chance from names i've seen on the cast-list ^^... I hope i wasn't too far off... And I guessed that the big saloonlady were called Delilah, since she sounds like Maybelle and they've got the same voice actor ^^"**

**Anyway, see you guys next thursday :D**

**Delilah OUT!**


	7. Out of the ashes, and into the snakepit!

**Heya doods, i'm uploading this chapter now on tuesday, since i won't be able to access any internet on thursday :/... **

**Oh and if anyone's interested; Adelie has plans for another fic! Only problem is that she's got so much to do right now, but she plans on uploading it any day this week... If i were her though, then i wouldn't even consider starting up a new fic until summer vacation o.O...**

**Anyway R&R~**

***** Chapter Seven; Out Of The Ashes, And Into The Snakepit *****

Rango felt hopeless as he sat on his worn out chair in his office. Bad Bill and his companions were still in jail and Rango could feel them glance at him now and then.

Rango didn't know what to do. He now had some interesting news on Blake for Woodrow. But he had no idea where the posse could be. He wanted to send someone to tell Woodrow the news, but everyone where going to the funeral this afternoon!

Mr Black had already finished a coffin for Bonnie, the plans were to bury her six feet down as soon as the shadows began to grow tall.

"You know I could go, right?" Priscilla suggested from her smaller desk across the room. Rango looked sceptically at her.

"But who would then speak to Delilah if she decided to come out of her room and talk? You know i'm not good with interrigating witnesses! Do i have to remind you what happened when i talked to Mrs Mole?" Rango said. That memory was awkward, especially to himself!

Priscilla snickered. "Then who do you suggest should ride after Woodrow and his posse?" She asked. "You will need someone who is fast, a good tracker and have no plans what-so-ever to go to the funeral." She continued and played with the brim of her hat.

"I was thinking that maybe i should go? Excelsior is fast, when it suits him!" Rango suggested.

His deputy almost laughed out loud. "He sure is, but what about the tracking part? No offense sheriff, but tracking aint your strongest spot."

Rango sighed and leaned over the desk, both hands holding up his head. Priscilla were right, as usual.

"But, what if Wounded Bird came along? He is the best tracker in the West!" Rango suggested happily.

"Thats true, but don't forget that he can't make any long trips anymore, not since he nearly were killed by Jake. Remember?" Priscilla said. Rango nodded. If it weren't for Wounded Birds foolish attempt to shoot Jake that day three years ago, then Rangos trap for Jake would have failed. And Rango would probably not even be alive this day! "When we came back from the Snakes Rattle yesterday, his wounds had opened up again so he spent most of his time with the Doc, getting them sewn together again. You probably didn't notice, you were too busy talking with sheriff Woodrow."

Priscilla folded her arms. She felt stupid for getting so upset, but Wounded Bird had cared for her since she was a mere baby. He had been like a father for her, he was the one who taught her everything she know today.

"Why don't you both go?" said Beans, who seemed to appear out of nowhere. Rango were so startled that he nearly jumped out of his chair. Priscilla however, seemed untouched. "I could keep an eye on the town. An' I could talk to Delilah if she wanted to."

"When did you get here?" Rango asked with an involuntearly high pitched voice.

"A long time ago..." Priscilla and Beans said at the same time. Rango lifted both eyebrows in surprise. He had neither seen nor heard her come.

"Sounds like a fair plan. Whaddya think, sheriff?" Priscilla said and adjusted the hat on her head.

Rango nodded. "I guess so..." He turned to Beans. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"Ofcourse! Besides, the other Dirtonians will probably help me if i would need it. Now go! Woodrow already has a huge leap, you should hurry an' catch up to him already!" Beans said and jokingly chased Rango up from the chair. She placed herself in the chair instead.

Priscilla and Rango thanked her and went out to get their runners.

Just couple of moments later, they were both out on the prairie. Chasing after the posse to deliver the news.

They had been riding for hours when they finally broke up for a short rest near a high mountainside. Both them and their runners were tired for running all day. Priscillas tracking ability had come really in handy, since Woodrow and the others seemed to be hiding their tracks as well they could.

They weren't planning on staying for long. Just enough to let the runners catch their breaths and drink some water.

However, a menacing rumbling far away disturbed them as they were getting settled down. Priscilla stood up and watched the horizon.

The sun were starting to set and colored the sky in orange, scarlet and pink. It was hard to discover at first, But as it came closer, like a big wall darkening the sky, Priscilla saw what was causing the rumbling.

"CHINOOK!" She shouted and clasped for the scarf she wore around her neck. Rango followed her example.  
He knew what a 'chinook' was; a desert storm. A raging sandstorm.

He knew they had to seek cover, and FAST! With the scarf pulled up over his muzzle, he started his search for something they could take shelter during the sandstorm.

"There!" Priscilla suddenly shouted, her voice muffled by the scarf, and pointed. Rango followed her finger and eventually noticed a crack in the mountain. It was pretty big, and looked deep. Perhaps it could give them protection from the sandstorm?

Rango nodded and they both mounted their roadrunners, who by now had sensed the coming danger and stepped around, making panicked sounds. They headed towards the crack as fast as they could. However, the storm was fast and it caught up to them before they could reach their hiding spot.

Rango and Priscilla had to dismount the runners and had to lead them to the crack.

They both made it to the crack and as soon as they stepped inside, they found themselves in a big, dark cavern. Rango fell down on his knees and started to cough.

He had sand EVERYWHERE! In his mouth, eyes, ears, armpits, boots, nose... Everywhere!

Priscilla also had sand all over her and as soon as she got in the cavern with Birdie after her, she started to scratch the sand out of her short fur.

"That was... Refreshing!" Rango joked and shook sand out of his boot. Priscilla smiled at first, but then she froze.

"Sheriff..." She said quietly. The feeling of being watched crept over her like a spider, sending chills down her spine.

"Hm?" Rango wondered and started shaking his other booth.

"We're not alone here" Priscilla continued. Both of them got silent. Not even daring to breathe as they listened after a sign that Priss had been right. For a long time, they couldn't hear anything else than the howling storm outside. But just as Rango opened his mouth to tell Priss that she might be imagining things, they heard a sound. It sounded like anyone dragging something heavy over the sand, shortly followed by a sound that almost made their hearts stop.

It was slow at first, but then it raised in both speed and volume. A hollow, rattling sound. Like someone shook a maracas, or Waffles head. The sound of a rattlesnakes rattle. Suddenly a second rattle joined in the orchestra. There were two of them!  
Priscilla drawed her guns quick as lightning and took a blind shot out in the dark, hoping to hit something. But instead, something big shot out at Rango and Priss from the other side.

They didn't have time to register what happened. They only saw the shadow bolt out at them and next thing they knew, they were both constricted by something long, muscular and scaly.

Rango looked up and looked into a couple of blood freezing, grim and somewhat familiar eyes.

Rango's heart almost came to a full stop. He recognized those eyes. He'd recognize them anywhere.

Even though the massive snake was trying to squeeze every last breath out of him and his deputy, Rango still manage to whisper; "Jake?"

***

**Hehehe, I told you the Rattlesnakes were going to show up soon x)! And another cliffhanger, just for you, StonecoldAphrodite ;)! lol, jk!**  
**Anyway, don't forget to leave a review and i'll see you next week with the newest chapter ;D!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	8. Hello, Brother

**Hi again guys :D! Thanks for reading ^^! I'm really like this chapter, so don't forget to review it ;)!  
Oh yeah, since both Jake and Blake are in this chappie, there will be pretty many bad words and curses! Just a lil' warning ^^...**

*** Chapter Eight : Hello, "Brother" ***

The Rattlesnake that had tried to squeeze every ounce of life out of the sheriff and his deputy let out a roaring laughter. This wasn't Jake?

"Well, well, well! Wha do we 'ave here, huh?" He said and his dark tongue sprung out of his mouth and tasted the air.

"Self servin' food! That's what it is!" The other Rattlesnake said and came out of the dark shadows. Rango couldn't see the Rattlesnake, since he's eyes were about to get squeezed out of his head, but the voice sounded like it belonged to a female. On second though, the Rattlesnake that had captured Rango and Priscilla didn't sound like Jake. This one sounded different, and sometimes his voice broke. This Rattlesnake was younger. Much younger.

"Yep, and since i was the one who got 'em, i'm the one who gets to eat 'em!" The male teased and tightened his grip.

"You! But you ate like, last week! You fatso!"  
"Well i NEED the calories! And if you were to put one some extra pounds, then you'd have a harder time bailin' us out of jail, dear sister!"

The female hissed at her brother, which only made her brother giggle. "If you continue eatin' like that, you're going to look like a sausage!" She paused. "On the other hand; Rattlesnake-Blake, Sausage of the West! That has a nice ring to it, eh?" She snickered.

"Oh SHUT UP ya big slu...!" Blake hissed but didn't get to finish his sentence, because his sister punched him on the head with her rattle.  
"CALL ME THAT AGAIN AND I'LL RIP YOUR TONGUE OUT!" She hissed loudly and bared her fangs.

"WELL, BRING IT ON BITCH!" Blake shouted and hugged his prey tighter.

The world was going black for Rango as he almost could feel his very soul get squeezed out. Priscilla had dropped her guns, but she was now trying to reach the knife she had in her belt, however that was practically impossible.. But then a third rattler echoed through the cavern. This one sounded bigger, meaner and... mechanical.

"If you two keep shoutin' like that, i swear to every damned demon in hell, that i will rip your damn heads off!" A familar voice hissed and the two young rattlesnakes recoiled slightly in surprise.

"Gee Jakey! Don't get yer rattle in a twist, bro!" The male said and tilted his head.

An even bigger rattlesnake came slithering out of the shadows and looked at his younger siblings.

"You two drive me mad sometimes, y'know that? Shouting your heads off inside a cavern that could collapse on your skulls and crush you like a pillbug..." Rattlesnake-Jake towered high above his siblings, who actually didn't seem all too threatened. He looked from Jolene to Blake and back and forth."If it weren't for ma, i would've...!" He noticed the two seemingly lifeless bodies in Blakes grip and interrupted himself. When he recognized them a faint grin spread over his face.

"Let them go, Blake..." He said and nodded to the two Dirtonians. Blake's jaw dropped wide.  
"What? No way!" He protested, but Jake gave him a serious look. Blake moaned unhappily and uncoiled himself, setting Rango and Priscilla free.

They both fell forward and landed on four legs. They chipped for breath while they checked for any broken bones. Rango noticed his hat was gone and started to look around for it as soon as his breathing were back to normal.

"Long time no see, 'brother'!" Jake said in a mockingly tone and crept closer to their 'guests'.  
Rango didn't say anything, instead he just smiled nervously and started to wave.

"You know this little wuzzy, Jake?" Jolene asked and cocked her head towards Rango.  
"Yeah, and why'dya call him bro, bro? " Blake said and slithered up to the side of his big brother. "You never told us ma had a thing goin' with lizards too...?" His sister punched him again with her rattle. Blake turned around to attack her too, but a warning glare from Jake made him change his mind.  
"Jolene, Blake, meet Rango. Sheriff of Dirt! Sheriff, meet my obnoxious family!" Jake chuckled. He took a closer look at Priscilla. " And i know you! You are that little, stubborn mouse brat, aren't ya?" He turned to Rango again. "Interesting choice of deputy, i must say!" he grinned. Priscilla started looking around for her revolvers. She didn't trust any of the snakes for a minute, and she would feel so much safer with her guns.  
"Wait a minute! Rewind! Sis, didn't you kill Rango a while ago?" Blake asked his sister, looking rather dumb. Jolene sighed.

"This ain't the same Rango, you twit! This is Rango the sheriff, NOT the bounty hunter!" Jolene growled, annoyed by her little brothers stupidity.

Jake ignored his siblings. "And what brings you two out here, eh? Looking for something?"

"Actually no, but our business here in the wasteland is strictly confidential" Rango answered. Still a bit nervous. "We can't tell you"

"You two ain't foolin' me..." Jolene said with a slight growl in her voice. "You're searching for that sheriff Woodrow Call, aren't ya?"  
Rango gulped before carefully answering; "Yes, but that is classed looking for someONE, not someTHING!"

Blake hissed angrily, bared his fangs and quick as lighting shot out at Rango and coiled himself around him for a second time.

"THEN I'VE GOT A MESSAGE FOR CALL WHEN YOU FIND HIM!" Blake roared with his long, sharp fangs only inched away from Rango's face. Rango felt the familiar feeling of getting crushed by a snake.

Priscilla noticed something gleaming a couple of feet away from her. One of her revolvers! She quickly threw herself at it, unsecured it and pointed at Blake.

"RELEASE SHERIFF RANGO! NOW, RATTLESNAKE!" Priscilla shouted angrily at the snake. Blake held up for a while and looked at the brave little mousegirl with an amused look on his face.

Suddenly Priss heard the clicking of another revolver beside her. She turned around and saw Jolene holding some sort of specially designed gun with her rattle, pointing it against it at her.

Jolenes face expression was solid as rock and her eyes had been narrowed. She looked like she could pull the trigger any second.

Priscilla remember something Woodrow said; "_She is very protective of her brothers and won't hesitate to shoot anyone pointing a gun at any of 'em..._"

Priss lowered her gun and secured it. However, Jolene wasn't satisfied until Priscilla had thrown the gun as far away as she could.

"Stop with the fucking shouting already!" Jake hissed angrily at the other people around him.

Blake didn't answe, instead he turned to Rango, who now were getting blue in the face.

"This is how it works; first i commit a murder, THEN you can accuse me for it! Sure, me and the law might not get along all the time, but i sure as hell know how it works!" He said to Rango and slightly loosened his grip to allow the chameleon to breathe. "I don't deny the fact that i murder people, because i do! And i do it gladly! But i can't fucking stand it when i get falsely accused for something i didn't do!"

"Wait? You say you didn't call that girl? That you were framed?" Priscilla asked sceptically. Blake turned to her.

"Duh! Believe it or not, but there are some people here in this god forsaken hole known as world, that i would never kill! One of the few persons were Isabelle!" Blake looked down at the ground. "I... I liked her... I'd never hurt her... I came to Diego City to visit her, but..." He loosened the grip on Rango even more.

Priscilla and Rango both looked surprised at the young rattlesnake. Did Blake actually had that sort of feelings for another creature?

When Blake looked up again, rage was blazing out of his eyes. He hardened the grip on Rango again. "And when i find that rotten scumbag who murdured her, i swear on mas grave, that i will make him wish that he was never born!"

Jake chuckled. "Y'know, there's only one reason why i put up with you, little brother..." He said with amusement in his voice. "Sometimes, you are hilarious!"

**Thanks for reading, and don't forget to leave one of your wonderful reviews :D! I always read them and they make me feel so happy inside (Y)! An no, Keltic Shadow-Star, I'll never stop with the cliffys *Mwahahaha*! :D**  
**Oh, and i bet you're wondering why i sometimes spell the word "rattlesnake" with both capital letters in the beginning and sometimes with lower. That's because when they're talking about the vigilante family, it's Rattlesnake (Rattlesnake-Jolene, Rattlesnake-Jake etc.). But when i'm talking about the snake as a specie, its rattlesnake ^^...**  
**Anyway, see ya next week guys :D!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	9. Family Secrets

**I've been waiting FOREVER to publish this chapter since I finished it the day after I published chapter 8 xD... And it's a pretty long chappie too ^^**

**And Adelie told me that there is a spellcheck for English, and now I feel very stupid for not knowing about it sooner o_o... Anyway, I'm using it now so hopefully there will be more correct spelling and grammar and less misspelled words ^^  
RE&R~! (= Read Enjoy and Review)**

***** Chapter Nine : Family Secrets*****

Blake rapidly turned to face his brother.

"I'm serious, Jake! And you know it!" He hissed angrily and glared at the larger rattlesnake.

"I know you are... That's why I find it so amusing!" Jake replied with a shrug. "Oh, and you might wanna let go of the sheriff, he's starting to turn blue."

Blake turned and discovered that Rango had turned blue. A bright, bluish turquoise color. He actually looked rather good in it.

Blake uncoiled himself and Rango fell into a panting pile on the ground, slowly regaining his normal, green color. While the sheriff regained his breath, Priscilla turned to Blake to ask him more questions.

"But this morning, we found one of our saloon ladies, killed by a rattlesnake. Are you saying that you're innocent in this case too?" She asked, not sure if she wanted to believe the snake.

Blake snorted. "Well duh! Besides, why would I care 'bout one of your tramps?" He answered with a poisonous edge in his voice.

Priss cocked her head. Lucky for Blake that Delilah didn't hear that... She thought.

"B-but, then who w-would it be?" Rango gasped and tried to stand up. He stumbled and nearly fell to the ground, but he was surprisingly saved by Jolene, who held out her rattle as a rail for him to lean on. He gave her a confused, yet grateful look. Jolene nodded as a response and looked outside the crack in the mountainside.

"Look, the sandstorm's over!" She cheered and turned to her brothers. "Let get out of here! I hate this place! It feels like it'll cave in on us any moment now!" She looked down at Rango and Priscilla. "I think your chickens fled further into the cave, and I don't think they'll be dare to come out until tomorrow."

"Actually, they are roadrunners!" Rango corrected her. Jolene shrugged.

"Same thing, they're poultry." She said neutral.

Blake agreed on going outside of the cave, Jake however refused.

"If you want to reveal yourselves and get killed out there go ahead! Then I'll finally be free from you two!" He growled and curled into a bun in the darkest corner.

"Gee, go ahead and sleep in the corner if you want, bro! We're not staying to get impaled by stalactites because you snore like a pissed off elephant seal!" Blake shrugged.

Jake hissed angrily and bared his fangs at his brother. Jolene sighed and rolled her eyes as she carefully scanned the outside. "Boys..." she muttered to herself and quietly slithered outside the cave. She came to a halt and let her long, dark tongue taste the air and wind in search for any potential danger. She winked to Blake when she decided that the coast was clear.

She suggested to Blake to make up a campfire, just to piss Jake off. He gladly agreed.

Prisscilla and Rango looked at each other. They wore more or less trapped. Either they could spend the night in the cave with the Grim Reaper or out in the open next to the Grim Reapers siblings, since they couldn't leave without their runners. They also had all their packing, ammunition, water and food stocked on their runners.

They came to a silent agreement that it might be safer out with the two younger snakes. They didn't wanna risk disturbing Jake. He was actually more dangerous than both Blake and Jolene.

They slowly walked towards the two snakes. They had retrieved their guns and Rango's hat and just the thought of spending the night with two of the West's most dangerous outlaws wasn't all that comforting.

Jolene had made up a small fire with the help of some dry bushed, grass and her gun. She and Blake had formed a semicircle around the fire, to somewhat shield it from potential posse members as much as possible.

In the light of the fire, Rango could see both of them much clearer. Jolene was shorted than both Blake and Jake. Jake was about twice as long. However, she compensated that with a head that was bigger than both of her brothers and looked somewhat misplaced. While her brother had red eyes with hints of yellow in them, her eyes were more evenly amber colored and slightly bigger. Her brother Blake was a bit longer than her, but still smaller than Jake and his scales and markings had a lighter color than his siblings. Both of them had identical dark brown stetson hats, while Jake wore his black, circle round custom made hat.

Jolene had two belts running across her torso, one containing bullets and the other a big peculiar revolver looking thing with a hollow handle so she could hold it with her rattle, since her lack of hands. Blake didn't wear any other weapon but his fangs.

"Well, well, well! Look who's joining our little campfire!" Blake chuckled and gestured for them to sit down with his rattle. Rango and Priscilla carefully did what the snake said. Their cautiousness made Blake laugh out loud. "Ya don't have to be chicken! We ain't gunna eat ya! If we did, then bro would actually kill us!"

Jolene giggled. "Yeah, because he has always been soo serious all the previous 21 568 times!"

"21 569!" They heard Jake say from inside the cavern. "And if you two don't put that fire out now, I will probably make it to 21 570! Or more!"

"Why? Are you afraid that a big, mean hawk will come and get us?" Blake shouted back. When Jake didn't answer, they both began to laugh as quiet as they could.

"Do you know why he's so scared of hawks?" Jolene suddenly turned to Rango with a sly smile.

Rango, over rumpled by the sudden and random question. He shrugged. "Natural predators? Aren't you scared of them too?"

The two young snakes laughed again. "Sure, we don't exactly like hawks either, but we aren't as hysterically shitpants scared of 'em as Jake are." Blake grinned.

"Nope, and the reason Jake is so scared of 'em is..." Jolene started to tell, but we're interrupted by Jake who started to shake his Gatlin-gun rattle. The hollow, mechanical rattling echoed throughout the night and sent chills up both Prisscilla's and Rango's spines.

"Aw come on! This is my favorite story! They already know about that neat rattle of yours and that you are terrified of hawks, why not tell them why?" Jolene complained.

"I swear to the Devil, that if ya don't shut up now I will...!" They heard Jake growl, but he was interrupted by Jolene, who started to tell the story anyway;

"You see, this happened while we still were youngs, neonates if you prefer. However Jake was a bit older than us and he still is actually! But one day, me and Blake were playing around our burrow and guess what Jake was? Well, babysitting us of course!" She said teasingly and throw a glance over at the cavern. Jake had popped his head out of the crack and seemed to be trying to make Jolenes head explode by using his willpower.

"Well anyway, we were playin' around and were too busy for noticing the shadow that suddenly swept over us. It wasn't until we heard that bloodcurling screech they do as we realized that we both were in deep trouble. Ma had gone hunting and Jake was nowhere to be found, probably snoozing underneath a mesquite.

So me and Blake were more or less panicking right now, trying to hide from the flying spawn of Satan while we shouted out for ma and Jake. And just as Jake came slithering as fast as he could from around the bend, the hawk swooped down and snatched him up. The hawk tries to lift from the ground, but from out from a nearby bush ma sprints forward and chomped down on the bird. However, the bird held such a strong grip on Jake that when the bird hit the ground, paralyzed by ma's poison, his rattle snapped like a dry twig! The bird was delicious and we didn't have to eat for several months after that. And Jake didn't dare to leave the burrow for THREE days!" Jolene ended with a satisfied snicker.

"Thats enough!" Jake growled, suddenly he was right by the campfire and had raised himself over them all.

"But come on, bro! It's not like you are ashamed over your replacement" Blake said and nodded to Jake's Gatling rattler. Jake loosened up a bit a silently agreed with his brother. This things was way better than a real rattle. But he was still mad at them both for telling the sheriff of Dirt the humiliating story of how he was caught off guard and almost eaten by a nasty hawk. On top of all he had been saved by his own mother. He hissed and maintained his pose.

"You two blockheads are going to get us all killed if ya don't shut yer traps now!" He said that to his brother and sister as if he was scolding them. "If ya don't start using your brains for once, then I won't have any other choice than to blow them right out of yer heads, get it?"

"Oh, what're ya going to do, big brother? Kill us?" Jolene teased and squinted her eyes.

Rango really didn't like where this is going. If it were someone else talking to Jake like that, he would have killed them in an instant. However, he seemed to hesitate with his siblings. Maybe he wouldn't kill them, but he would get so pissed off that he killed him or Priscilla instead. Or worse, their runners. Without their runners, they would probably die a horrible death out in the desert instead.

"Most likely. I ain't gunna let you two be the death of me, I've told ya that before!" He warned and cocked and twirled his gun.

"Naah, you wouldn't kill us! You like us too much! C'mon, admit it!" Blake started teasing his big brother.

"No, I hate your guts!" Jake snorted. Jolene snickered and turned to Rango and Priscilla.

"Even if he wants to kill us, he couldn't! Because he promised ma on her deathbead that..." Jolene told them, but Jake didn't allow her to continue. He interrupted her by twinning himself around his sister and pressed the Gatlings muzzle to her head.

"THATS IT, little sister! You've just earned yourself a one-way ticket to HELL!" He shouted to hear. Way beyond pissed off. Jolene squinted with her eyes.

"Can't you shout a little higher? I don't think the folks in Mississippi can hear you!" She complained and didn't seem to care that her brother was about to pull the trigger on her head.

"Aww! What's the matter bro? Is our sister threatening your reputation?" Blake said with a sly smile. Priscilla tried very hard not to laugh.

Jake ignored him and locked eyes with his little sister, who was returning his glare with a nonchalant look in her eyes.

"What're you waiting for then? That I'll die from old age?" Jolene snickered. Rango held his breath, prepared to get covered in snakeblood and brain substance as Jake blast his little sisters head with holes, but nothing happened.

Jake hesitated and withdrew from his sister. He silently growled to himself; "Like I said, 21 570..."

**This chapter was actually intended to be longer than this, but after three pages, I decided to end it xD... Don't want it to be too long either xD**

**Delilah OUT!**


	10. Bad things always come in two

**Sorry its so late T_T!  
Thanks for your reviews everyone :D, you guys are awesome!  
Oh, and I was reading through my older chapters and noticed a fatal thing: I totally forgot about the Mud-pond! The water from the movie were supposed to have gathered in a small lake next to the town! And thats why they for once could afford to waste it (like when Priss poured water over Rango's head to wake him up, anyone remember that xD?)... Crap, I messed up... I guess I should tell you some things about it as it will have a rather big role in one of the future chapters:  
The town is still called Dirt, but next to the town there's a small lake called "Mud" or "Mud-pond". It came to be after Rango had released the water unto Dirt in the final showdown three years ago, and the water that didn't vaporize, gathered up in a pond. The townspeople of Dirt were thinking of renaming the whole town Mud, but after careful consideration they found out that Dirt was a way better name than Mud. It fitted the town somehow.  
Anyway, next chapter ;D!**

***** Chapter Ten : Bad Things Always Come In Two *****

Both Rango and Priscilla felt like they were crazy when they decided to sleep alongside the two Rattlesnakes. These were notorious killers after all, and two of them was maniacs who killed people as an hobby! Even though Jake had gone back into the shelter of the cavern, not willing to risk his scales out in the open!  
However, while the days on the prairie were scorching hot and sunny, some nights could be as cold as an abominable snowmans butt. And this was just such a night.  
Rango tried to warm himself in front of the dying fire, but it was to no use. Whatever was left of the fire wasn't enough to warm him. Even Priscilla was cold, but at least she had fur!

"Ya cold, little ones?" Jolene suddenly asked. Rango jumped slightly. He had thought that she was asleep!

He did an unnoticeable little nod. "Perhaps a little bit..." He said quietly.

Jolene chuckled and she quickly lashed out and coiled herself around both Priscilla and Rango.

Rango held his breath and waited for Jolene to try and crush them both like her brother had done before, but nothing happened. She just curled up into a bun with the two Dirtonians in the middle and rested her head next to them.

Rango carefully placed his hand on her before deciding to rest against the young snake. He had heard that snaked were coldblooded, but she actually felt kinda warm.

"T-thank you..." Rango said to her. Jolene watched him with one of her big eyes and nodded in response before she shut her eyes closed and started drifting off to sleep.

Priscilla didn't want to trust the snake as easily as Rango did. But after all, the Rattlesnake did seem to trust THEM enough to offer them a warm spot for the night. Priss still didn't like it when she finally succumbed to the sleep.

**In Dirt**

Beans looked at the sun as it was rising above the horizon. The rays casting blinding reflections on the water surface of the Mud-pond. She was hoping that Rango would return safely home. The thought of the Rattlesnakes around in the area made her shiver. Spoons had offered to ride home to her farm and make sure her livestock had food and water for the night, while Beans herself had taken the role as a temporary sheriff.

Bad Bill and his gang continually tried to persuade Beans to let them out, but that had ended with Beans leaving them to behold the beauty of the sunrise. This night had been pretty cold, and she was worried about both Rango and Priscilla. Okay, maybe not Priscilla. That girl could easily take care of herself. But Rango however, he always tended to get bit... naïve...  
She sighed and was about to return to the sheriffs office when she caught something in the corner of her eye.

She quickly turned to face whatever it was that were coming. She could only see a ball of dust moving towards town. She narrowed her eyes and noticed the silhouettes of a small posse heading straight for Dirt.

For a moment, Beans thought it was Rango and Priscilla returning with Woodrow and his posse. But as they came closer, she noticed they were too few.  
She frowned and turned around and ran back to the town. She had seen the one riding ahead of the bunch. And he looked uncomfortably much like Rango's description of the Stranger in black.

**And back to Rango and Priss...**

When Rango woke up the next morning, he noticed that the snakes were missing. Priscilla was already up and awake, but she told him that the Rattlesnake must have disappeared before even she woke up. She handed him a cup of coffee, which he gladly accepted and drank.  
"And while you were sleeping, I took the opportunity to retrieve our runners. They were huddled together deep inside the cave. The snakes must've scared 'em real good!" She said and poured a cup of coffee to herself.

Rango looked around and saw the two roadrunners tied up to a dead tree next to the cave-opening. Priscilla finished her coffee in one sweep and stood up.

"We should probably get going. The posse already has a huge lead, we better go and catch up to them fast. Their tracks were blown away by the sandstorm, but I am positive they headed south." She said while kicking sand over the fire to kill it. Rango nodded in agreement and finished his coffee too.

They both packed whatever need packing, climbed into the saddles of their runners and set off south, to find sheriff Woodrow.

And a couple of hours later they found him. Shot...

**And I decided to end it with another cliffhanger, since you guys seem to love them so much (V)... Lol xD**  
**Btw, I'm so very, very, very, VERY sorry it's late :(... It was the last week of school for me and I had so much to do that I forgot to upload it, sorry :(...**  
**Oh, and I won't upload any chapters next week since I'm going camping with Adelie ^^. Next chapter won't come until two weeks, sorry... again ^^"**

**Delilah OUT!**


	11. Mutiny!

**Guys... I'm so, so sorry I haven't updated for like, WEEKS! (maybe even months?), but our router died in a thunderstorm we had someday in June, and without it there's no way for me to get on the internet. Plus I've been sick for like, two weeks so I haven't had the strength write :( (still feeling a bit feverish)... Anyway, we still haven't got a new router, so I'm borrowing Adelies computer to post these chapters, don't expect any updates soon, at least not until we got our router _... But don't worry! I'm NOT quitting this story, I like it far too much :D! A new chapter always WILL come sooner or later!  
And I hope this covers up for some of the damage, but here's TWO new chapters I managed to write while we were without internet and before I got sick ;)  
**

***** Chapter Eleven : Mutiny! *****

They had only been riding for a couple of hours when Priscilla shouted out for Rango; she had seen something in the sand. The big gray, writhing thing looked like vultures gathering around a carcass.

Intrigued they both rode closer and shooed the scavengers away, even though they were about twice the size. It was a roadrunner, or at least what was left of it. It was covered partially with sand, so it must've died during the sandstorm.

"Isn't that sheriff Calls saddle?" Priss said and pointed to the thrashed saddle on the carcass' back. Rango took a closer look and felt a cold hand gripping his heart when he realized Priss were right.

"But then... Where's Woodrow?" Rango asked. Priss shrugged and looked around.

"There are more vultures over there!" She said and pointed to another group of the vile scavenger birds that seemed to sit still around something. Waiting for their little snack to die.

With loud "Whoop"s and "Yaah!"s, they made their way through the batch of vultures and found sheriff Woodrow Call in the middle of it all. He lied face up and almost fully covered with sand, just like his bird. Rango jumped down from Excelsior and

"Sheriff?! Sheriff Call?!" He rushed toward the seemingly unconscious prairiedog and carefully shook his shoulders. A faint moan were heard from the sheriff. "He's alive!" Rango said with a relieved sigh. "But where's the others? And what happened here?!" He added a bit worried.

"He got shot..." Priss answered the last of his questions.

"How do you know that?" Rango asked sceptically. Priscilla pointed to Woodrows stomach, where Rango held his hand. Rang carefully lifted the hand and noticed that his palm was covered with blood. Rango shrieked in surprise and tried to shake it off. When he stood up, he noticed another creature lying in the sand further away.

"Priss, stay here and help sheriff Call, I see someone over there!" He said while running to the other person. The vultures didn't seem all to curious about him.

He knelt before the lifeless figure and turned him around, only to discover it was Augustus McCrae, the deputy! Rango shaking bent down to control if Augustus was still alive. He couldn't hear him breathing, but suddenly he sprang up and pressed his gun against Rangos nose. Very much alive.

Rango jumped back in surprise and stared at the gun in the jackrabbits paws.

"W-wait! It's me!" Rango said and hold up his arms to protect himself. Augustus wrinkled his nose, but then he seemed to remember the sheriff of Dirt.

"Well darn it! I was hopin' it was that good for nothin' scumbag that ambushed us!" He snarled and put his gun back in its holster. He tried to stand up, but the gunwounds in his right leg and hip made him cringe in pain. He cursed again.

Rango gave him a helping hand and with joined forces, they managed to lift the old jackrabbit up on his feet. Even though the pain made almost made Gus scream, he managed to take a few steps.

Rango realized that he couldn't help Gus on his own so he called for Priscilla, who had started heating up a fire to cook some healing herbs and roots to put on the wounds. She abandoned her ongoing work to help Rango carry the wounded deputy to the fire.

"What happened?" Rango hurried to ask as soon as Gus was sitting somewhat comfortably on the ground, his wounded leg rested on a small sand hill.

"Haven't got a darn clue!" He mumbled and gratefully accepted a water bottle from Priss. He drank before he continued; "That darn sandstorm surprised us when we had set camp for the night. And suddenly out of nowhere, someone shot at us!" Gus made a sudden, big movement with his arms which made Excelsior and Birdie jump in surprise. "It was MADNESS, I tell ya kids! MADNESS! Bullet were flying EVERYWHERE and we couldn't neither breathe nor see! Suddenly some lucky pig got a lucky shot in my leg here... I've been passed out until I heard you two kids show up! Thank god the sandstorm didn't bury us completely, or we would've been goners by now!"

He cast a worried look at Woodrow, who still lied unconscious on his back. The only lifesigns he made was an occasional moan. "Gee, I hope ol' Woody here makes it... That wound looks mighty nasty!"  
"Yeah, we need to get him back to Dirt as fast as possible. There's not much we can do here, and to try and take out the bullet would probably cause more harm than good..." Priscilla said and poked in the fire. "Doc however should be able to patch him up though..."  
"Good... good..." Gus said and scratched one of his long ears. "What're you kids doin' out here anyway?" He asked Rango.

"We came to tell you that one of our townspeople got murdered last night by a rattlesnake, we believed it could have been Blake" Rango started explaining.

Gus raised an eyebrow. "Believed? Of course it was him! Why even doubt?"

Rango didn't know how to continue. "Well... The thing is... We met the Rattlesnakes last night, Blake claims that he is innocent and that him and his sis are after the real culprit..."

Gus' eyes flashed and he grabbed Rango by the coat and pulled the lizard closer to his face.

"You've met the serpent-devils?! And didn't even try to apprehend 'em? And now you say you believe one of the slimiest murderers in the whole West when he claims to be innocent?!" He hissed and clutched his leg in pain. Rango pulled away and held up his hands in defense.

"First off, what he said does makes sense. He wasn't near Dirt at that time, and second; from what I could tell, he had a thing for that Isabelle of yours, and would never hurt her" Rango explained, but it only made the jackrabbit angrier.

"That still doesn't explain why you didn't catch 'em..." He muttered.  
"Because we couldn't! Its just that simple, we didn't prepare for a run-in with the snakes. It just seemed to unlikely, and we didn't want to load to much on the runners since we wanted to find you guys fast." Priss explained and poked around some more in the fire. "We should rest for a bit before heading to Dirt since our runners is tired. By the way, wasn't there more of you guys?"

"I don't know, they disappeared after the storm..." Gus answered and looked troubled as he looked around.

"Rango, could you go look for them before we head off?" Priss asked and looked at Rango with a it-wasn't-a-suggestion look. Rango sighed and nodded. He stood up and grabbed a burning piece of wood from the fire and went out to search for more members of the posse.

*******

Thanks for reading :D! Next chappie will be up in a jiffy ;)

Delilah OUT!


	12. The Bountyhunter

**As I promised, here's chapter #2 ^^! I'm really sorry that you guys had to wait so long :/... I'm not sure when next chappie comes up, but I'm almost done with it and hopefully Adelie will be kind enough to let me use her laptop again (V)**

*** Chapter Twelve: The Bountyhunter ***

Rango began searching for other surviving members of the Diego-posse. He didn't find anything. Not even their runners, or that which could've been left of them...

When the sun had completely set and the cold came creeping, he had to give up and went back to the fire. When Priss asked him how it went, he just shook his head and poked in the fire with a dry twig.

"Not even traces after any living creatures!" He added and released the twig.

"That doesn't make any sense! How could everyone just disappear like that?" Priss said.

"Unless they became buried underneath the sand?" Rango suggested. Gus grunted.

"Or if they all were in on it!" The jackrabbit said and crossed his arms. "I bet it was that black fellow... He must've bribed 'em or somethin'..." Neither of them liked that idea, but it might be true. That only made them feel more depressed.

"Speaking of which..." Rango said, changing the subject. "Who is that guy? He really gives me the shivers!"  
"Yeah, there's something... unnerving 'bout that creep!" Priss added and shivered.

Gus shook his head. "I don't know who he really is. I bet Woodrow don't know. Hell, I don't think any of us do! He just came right when we were about to leave Diego City and claimed that he knew where the snakes were headed." He spit on the ground and moved closer to the fire. His face became partially lit, which really heightened the scare-factor. "I don't know why we brought him along, really. But I guess he seemed to be a guy we could use when we were going to confront the serpent-devils. But you kids are right, there's something weird with that guy. First, he didn't even want to reveal his name! But after Woodrow said that he wasn't allowed to come along if he can't even share his name, he claimed his name to be Roy. Roy Hills. I don't know if I believe that, though." Gus yawned and stretched out his arms and massive feet. "Well whaddya say kids, we get some shuteye before going back to Dirt, eh? Not too long one though, wouldn't wanna risk losing ol' corporal Call here, eh?"

Priss and Rango flinched. "Corporal Call?" They both asked at the same time. Gus chuckled, bent back and covered his eyes with his widebrimmed hat. "Eeyup! We were both corporals at one point, but thats a story we'll save for later, eh?" And before Priss and Rango could ask any more questions, the old deputy was snoring loudly, whisking away into dreamsland.

They awoke a few hours later. Its was late at night and if would have been pitch black out if the moon hadn't been full. It cast a silvery light across the land and made the cactus' cast long, ominous shadows. Somewhere far away, a coyote howled his sad song and some nocturnal bugs were chirping.

Woodrow were still alive, barely, and Gus couldn't wait to get going. Gus rode Priscillas Birdie with his unconscious friend behind the saddle while Priss and Rango shared Excelsior, to the big white birds horror.

It would take them quite a long time to get back to Dirt, perhaps even days. The thought made Gus even more impatient, and he cursed himself for sleeping some of them precious hours away. Not matter how necessary it actually was for them and their runners to rest up, now when they only had two.

They rode the whole night and the following morning. At lunch they took a quick break near a small watering hole before continuing their journey. Woodrow's condition were stable, but not very promising unless he would get professional treatment soon.

However, it would take them until the next morning when they finally saw the silhouette of their beloved town next to the shimmering lake.

But the sight of the town made Priss feel... Uneasy. She felt that something were wrong. She just couldn't figure out what.

The exhausted runners came to a halt just outside Docs office and went for the waterbasin.

"Doc! We've got a wounded one here!" Rango shouted but nothing happened. The town were quiet and seemed deserted.

"Where is everybody?" Priss asked, gripping her revolvers.

"I-I don't know..." Rango said, finally noticing that something weren't as it should be.

Suddenly all three of them heard the familiar, unsettling sound of someone cocking a shotgun. They turned around to face the one holding the gun. Gus frowned when he recognized who it was.

"Samuel? What's going on here, Sam?" He asked the young bobcat. Sam didn't answer, he just tightened his grip on the gun.

"Well, well, well! Look who FINALLY shows up!" A familiar voice said, coming from the other side of the street. Rango shivered when he hear the voice. Smooth, young yet with a mature undertone with the ability to send chills up everybodys backs. Rango turned around and saw the stranger in black, Roy Hills as he claimed to be called, come out of the Sheriffs office with a tied up and gagged Beans. He held her arm in a tight grip with a shining revolver pressed against her head. The revolver looked like a .45 Colt Peacemaker with a scratched ebony handle.

"We've been waiting for DAYS for you sheriff, haven't we dear?" Roy said and pulled Beans closer and traced the weapon along her jaw. "I almost got tired of waiting!"

Beans mumbled something through the rag in her mouth and tried to step on Roys foot, which only caused Roy to chuckle.

"Let her go, Hills! What are you even doing here? What is it that you want?" Rango said, worried.

"What do most men who got their identity stolen and ridiculed want?" Roy answered and pushed Beans away from him, into the arms of two other mean looking guys.

Rango made a puzzled look. "Wha...?!"  
"Revenge?" Priscilla said solemnly with her eyes latched on Roy, carefully watching every move he made.

Roy clapped his hands. "Bra-vo, miss Deputy!" He waved with his gun at them. "Throw your weapons on the ground, please?" Priscilla hesitated, but Rango gave her a sad nod. She shook her head, but still threw her double revolvers and her shotgun on the ground in front of her and took a few steps back. Rango followed her example.

"Sam..." Roy said and nodded for the guns. Sam put down his shotgun and handed their weapons to Roy. Roy picked up Rangos gun and weighed it in his hand. He smiled. "Nice gun, buddy. You still use only one bullet? Or do you actually have to use several now?" He mocked.

"What was that revenge talk about before? Just get to the point already, Hills!" Priscilla snorted.

"Alright, but first I might have to introduce myself; I am not Roy Hills..." Roy said and holstered his gun, but kept Rangos gun in hand. "I'll be honest with you guys, I've been DYING to do this!" He added gleefully and jumped down from the sidewalk. He tilted his black hat and spun Rangos revolver around his index finger.

"I'm one of them guys that are feared all over the West. The Bountyhunter everyone knows. Except for you Rango. You don't even know me, yet you want to be me. Going as far as to brag about my bravades and making up some own stories." He gleered at Rango, who now started to get paler and paler. "So, Rattlesnake-Jake and me are brothers now are we?"

"A-are you?" Rango managed to stutter.

"AND NOW he gets it!" The bountyhunter laughed. "Yes, my name is Rango... And I have a little favor to ask of you, Rango!"

*******

As I said; I'm not sure when next chappie comes, but what I know is that it WILL come ;)

**Again, I'm so sorry for the long wait :(!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	13. The Favor

**We've FINALLY got a new router and its working so much better than our old one :D! It's GREAT to have internet again (\/)! Anyway, here comes the new chapter, enjoy~!**

*** Chapter Thirteen : The "Favor" ***

SheriffRango felt his throat dry up. He tried to laugh, but it turned out as a nervous croak.

"Well, what a coincidence!" He said with a high pitched voice. He cleared his throat and repeated himself. "That's a nice name! It suits you!" He added.

Gus mumbled something to himself.

The other Rango didn't seem so impressed. "Yeah, but that name has been disgraced, thanks to you! Do you have any idea what it feels like when some useless, half-baked loser takes your name, claims to be you and make you into the laughing stock of the West? I'll tell ya; IT AINT NICE!"

He growled and turned to the two crooks standing by the Sheriffs office, one of them, a short ratlike rodent, tried to hold Beans still while the other one, a hyena, laughed at his friend almost getting pummeled by a tied up girl. "Bentley! Bring the rest of the folks out here will ya?"

The hyena, apparently Bentley, stopped laughing and nodded. He went back into the sheriffs office. Some shouts and shrieks were heard before the first townspeople came out with their hands on their heads. Tacker, the blacksmith prairie dog and his family came out first with Bentley while Sergeant Turley came last, constantly being poked in the back with a shotgun held by a tall, mean looking coyote.

"Calm down there, sonny! Ahm walking as fast as I can!" He complained, but the coyote replied by hitting the bird in the head, hard, with the shotgun and growl.

Rango stared with his mouth agape. The whole town! He had taken the whole town hostage! Plus, he had somehow managed to get them all to fit inside the sheriffs office!  
"Ya know, Rango..." The other Rango said. "If you removed all the bars and other prison things in the prison, it actually becomes quite spacey!" The bountyhunter said, as if he had heard Rangos thoughts. Oh yeah... Rango thought. The Sheriffs office is connected with the prison. Genius!

Thankfully, Doc was among the townspeople and that immediately reminded Rango of Woodrow.

"Please mr... Eh Rango. Woodrow here need medical attention. Doc over there is a, well, a doc! We need his help!" Rango said, almost begged.

"Do I look like someone who cares?" The bountyhunter snorted. "Ya know, if I hate someone I usually just dispose of 'em as soon as I can" He said loud enough for the town to hear, keeping his eyes fixed on Rango. "And you are certainly classified for that category, sheriff! But, I've actually got somethin' bigger in mind here. I've got a bigger vendetta towards someone else, and you, Rango, is goin' to find these persons and bring 'em to me!" He pointed to the sheriff and pulled up one of the corners of his mouth to a lopsided smile. "If you do that Rango, I'll forgive you and call us even!"

Rango nodded. "Certainly, who am I looking for?"

The bountyhunter Rango did one of his bonechilling chuckles. "Don't worry, you have already met 'em! The Rattlesnakes ofcourse!"

Exactly those persons Rango DIDN'T want to go after. "B-but finding them would be like finding a needle in a haystack! It would take maybe WEEKS to find CLUES about their whereabouts!" Rango said, shocked.

"That is just what I was afraid you were goin' to say, sheriff..." The other Rango said and shook his head. He pointed the sheriffs gun at one of the townspeople. "YOU! Whats yer name?"

A tall, thin and very young kangaroo rat were forced out of the clung of townspeople. He almost tripped when the coyote pushed him out on the street. He stood there on shaking legs and twirled the end of his shirt. He swallowed nervously and looked at sheriff Rango.

"Your NAME, kiddo!" The other Rango demanded to know. His shout made the young kangaroo rat jump and wince in fear.

"P-Phillip, sir! Phillip Edwards!" He said with a cracked voice.

"How old are you, Phillip?" Rango asked and lowered the gun.

"T-thirteen, sir! B-but ahm turning fourteen in two months, sir!" Phillip answered, his voice still a bit unsteady.

"Well, do you know this kid, Rango?" Rango said and turned to the sheriff.

"Y-yes" Rango answered, recognizing the child as the oldest son of Taylor and Lotta Edwards, the carpenter and his wife.

"Do you want him to grow up to be an adult?"

Rango flinched. This question worried him. "Ofcourse! What are you...?" He started to say, but the other Rango quickly lifted his gun again and pointed it to the kid.

"Then I suggest that you hurry the fuck up! Every sunset that passes I will kill one of these townspeople, starting with this kid!"

Everyone gasped in shock and somewhere in the heap of critters, a woman cried out:

"No! Not Phillip! NOO!" His mothers heartbroken sobs echoed.

"No, Rango! Don't! He's just a kid!" Rango said, taking a few steps toward the bountyhunter.

"Yes, Rango! I'm sick of waiting for you! This time, I'll make sure you hurry up! If you want any people left in this town, then I suggest you get movin'!" He said with an evil smirk. "The clock is tickin', sheriff!"

Rango couldn't believe it. His throat felt dry and a sudden urge to strangle this cruel lizard burned in his chest. "W-why?" He whispered.

"Because fuck you, that's why! MOVE!" The other Rango said and snapped with his fingers. Sheriff Rango turned around and saw Bad Bill come with the bountyhunters black road runner. It's was loaded with food, water and a blanket.

"Look, to ease the pain a little, I'm letting you borrow my runner, I bet yours is tired. Her name is Arrow, she is the fastest runner ever hatched. Take good care of her, ya hear?" Rango said and stepped towards his runner and stroke her beak. Arrow squawked and puffed on her master with her head.

Sheriff Rango stood like frozen to the ground. The clock was ticking, but he could manage himself to move. He felt sick in his stomach, like he wanted to vomit. He looked at Phillip. He was standing on the exact same spot and tears were running down his cheeks. He sniveled and looked at Rango with a begging look in his eyes. Rango closed his eyes and looked away. Phillips mother were going ballistic, screaming and tried to claw her way to her son.

"C-come on, Priss..." Rango managed to whisper and started to make his way to Arrow. Bad Bill was still holding her and silently chuckled at the sheriff. Oh how he loved to see the misery in the sheriffs eyes!

Priss nodded and turned to get her runner when suddenly someone grabbed her hand.

"Except, your pretty little deputy won't be following you!" The other Rango said and signaled for Sam to bring Priss to the rest of the townspeople. Priss growled and tried to resist, but the bobcat was stronger than her. "Nope, this is a journey you'll have to make on your own, sheriff!"

Rango was about to object, but he couldn't find the words. He was really bad at tracking. As in REALLY BAD, with capital letters! How would he do this without Priss? The Rattlesnakes were hard enough to track as it was, and to have to do it without Priss by his side would be impossible!

"Come on now sheriff! If you don't do this, how will you ever learn to do anything by yourself?" The bountyhunter chuckled. Sheriff Rango didn't answer. He just clenched his teeth and climbed up in the saddle.

"My gun..." He managed to press forth. "Can I at least have my gun?" The other Rango shook his head. "Ofcourse..." he mumbled.

He was going to signal for the runner to begin, but she was a step before him and already started running. The surprised Rango clung to the reins and tried to keep his balance when Arrow exploded into full speed.

"YO RANGO! IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO ARROW, I'LL PERSONALLY SKIN YOU FOR IT!" The bountyhunter shouted after him, but he couldn't hear it. All he could hear was the wailing of Lotta Edwards and all he could see was the big, scared eyes of young Phillip Edwards.  
A single tear of humiliation and frustration pressed its way out through Rangos eyelids.

He thought hate was a strong word, but in this case it was the perfect word to describe his feelings for the bountyhunter.

*******

MWAHAHAHA!

Sorry guys... I don't like it when people threatens to kill children either (no matter how much I dislike 'em) but somehow, I felt that this was probably something that Rango would do. Not our sheriff Rango ofcourse ;), but the bountyhunter. **First, I planned for Phillips father, Taylor to be the unlucky number one here, but somehow it just happened; Phillip was the one put against the wall with a gun pointed at him... Gawd, I feel bad :(... But Rango don't... I guess that's why I didn't change it...  
I think I'll go fill up the sink with water and keelhaul myself as a punishment for killing off sweet little Phillip...**


	14. Like Finding Snakes in a Desert

**Hello guys!... Anyone still there? I hope you guys don't hate me for killing of that kid T_T... But it felt necessary somehow T_T... I'm an awful person :sob:...  
Anyway, here comes the next chapter, didn't wanna keep you guys waiting too long after an ending like that ^^... Oh, and I should warn about the language in this chapter; Rango ain't to happy right now so he might curse like a mutherfahker xD!**

**Oh, and one more thing: I won't be updating on a schedule like I did before our router was executed, reason 1: My school will probably be stopping me from having any free time at all since we got a new teacher; the dreaded Läx-Lisah (Homework-Lisah), she is legendary for giving us homework ON EVERY SINGLE THING! And we've got her in most of our subjects, including math T_T... fml...**

**Reason 2: I'll be working on a co-op project with two friends (Robin and Niko, you'll find Niko on Nikolokinina (Youtube) and Kumabachi (dA, although she's never online there anymore _...) and Robin is TheGroosen8or here on ). It's going to be a Zelda fanfic, and its going to be EPIC :D! I'll be in charge of the artworks, Niko will be in charge of details, advice and similar things considering the Zelda-universe while Robin, the original author, will be in charge of everything else ^^ (like writing, plot, characters etc.) **

**As soon as I can, I'll upload some pictures on dA ^^**

*** Chapter Fourteen : Like Finding Snakes In A Desert ***

Rango rode the whole day, searching for clues after the Rattlesnakes. He went to the cavern where they had taken shelter during the night, but nada. The sun was about to set, but so far nothing had turned up. He was constantly reminded of Phillip and his inevitable fate. Everytime he closed his eyes, he saw the face of the young kangaroo rat. He really tried his best to find as much as a hint where the snakes could have possibly gone. But without Priscilla and her tracking abilities, every rock he turned on turned out to be empty.

He had taken a break by a watering hole and sadly watched as the sun disappeared beyond the horizon. He could almost hear the gunshot and Lotta Edwards sorrowful cries.

"Damn you!" He whispered. "DAMN YOU!" He shouted out to the open desert. Arrow looked up from the watering hole and looked at Rango. Her head slightly cocked to the side.

"I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS! MURDERER!" He kept shouting out as if the other Rango could hear him and kicked at the ground. "I'LL FUCK YOU UP! GET WHAT I'M SAYING?" His voice cracked and after some more shouting and punching the ground he fell to his knees. Worn out with tears dripping on the ground.

Arrow had lied down on the ground and watched the chameleon as he kept venting his rage. She looked almost a bit amused.

When Rango finally fell to the ground he turned to see the black runner looking at him. He was almost sure that little bitch laughed at him.

"And what're you looking at, FEATHERBRAIN?!" He shouted at her. Arrow ignored him and just kept looking at him. But when she realized that his little rage burst was over, she tucked her head halfway under the wing and fell asleep.

Rango however, couldn't sleep. He just lied there on his back and stared up at the stars. His throat hurt from all that shouting and his heart raced. He was so worried about the folks back home. Wondered who might be next... Everything has been like a nightmare for him, ever since he met that damn lizard. He hadn't been allowed to relax for a day and his body ached after spending several days in the saddle.

Eventually, he had enough and stood up, packed his things and strode up to the sleeping Arrow. She was almost invisible in the dark of the night and Rango nearly tripped over her.

"Wake up, featherbrain! We have to get going!"He said and knocked on the birds neck. She quickly lashed out and pecked him on the top of his skull. Rango backed off. "What the...? Okay you asked for it, I'm going to turn you inside out, featherbrain!" Rango growled, so not in the mood for this right now. The bird puffed up her feathers and opened her beak. A soft hiss escaped her throat and she lifted her wings a bit to look bigger.

Come on Rango, don't show her that you're almost shitting your pants right now... He thought to himself. He tried to take the reins, but the bird pecked him on the hand as soon as he got close enough. He quickly clashed his hand into the side of the birds head. Big mistake. As soon as his hands backside connected with the bird, the bird stood up. She glared at the chameleon with her round yellow eyes. The crest on her head stood straight up and she lowered her head in align with her body and ruffled her feathers. Her wings unfolded and her mouth wide open. She crept closer to Rango and hissed again.

Rango didn't have any choice but to back away from the pissed off bird. He held up his hands to protect himself.

"Calm down, featherhead! I just want to get going! That's all!" He said in an attempt to calm her down, but it didn't work. "Listen, I'm sorry! But..." He didn't finished the sentence, because the bird suddenly changed her stance. She folded her wings again and straightened her neck, making her as long as possible. The crest was still risen and she looked down on Rango. Almost in a despising way. She stood still like that for a long time, like she was waiting for something.

"I-I'm sorry?" Rango said after a moment of silence between the two.

Arrow cocked her head to the side and walked away. The apology wasn't perfect, but it would have to do!

Rango stared with his jaw agape as the bird went back to sleep in the same spot as before.

"You're just like your master, you know that, featherbrain?" Rango mumbled and was more or less forced to try and go back to sleep.

Arrow saw the sun rising and looked sideways to the sheriff. That lug had been sleeping the whole night, mumbling something about some "Oz-wizard". She stood up from the ground and walked over to the spring and let some of the water trickle its way down her throat. The water was perfect, just the way she liked it; slightly cooled down from the night, but still warm.

She looked up at the still sleeping chameleon with her beak dripping. Maybe she should wake him up? Nah, he was awfully rude last night, interrupted her beauty sleep and called her featherbrain repeatedly... He deserved some stress! If birds could smile, Arrow would have pulled off a smug, almost a bit evil, grin. She went back to the spot where she used to sleep and started to sandbathe while the sun was slowly warming up the sand.

Rango woke up by something softly pecking its beak on his face. He started giggling and slowly opened his eyes.

"Ah yes, that's the spot! Please go on, miss Bea..." He interrupted himself when he stared into the round yellow eyes of a black roadrunner instead of his Beans. "What? Who are...?" But then he suddenly remembered everything. He panicked and looked for the sun. It was in the about noon. He cursed himself for sleeping so long and rushed to pack his things. "Damn it! Why didn't you wake me up sooner, featherbrain?" He snarled to Arrow.

Arrow, who had decided she was fed up with waiting, finally woke him up instead of letting him sleep the week away and this was the thanks she got? Her crest rose and she turned away with her head lifted high.

Rango noticed this and started to regret that little outburst. After all, she did wake him up. Excelsior would probably have letting him sleep and causing further delay. "Thanks... thanks for waking me up..." He said and looked down on the ground, lucky nobody else was around to see him apologize and thank a bird.

Arrow rolled her eyes. Apology barely accepted... BARELY! She turned to Rango and allowed him to saddle her and sit up.

And so, Rango started his long and impossible quest: to find three elusive snakes in the Mojave desert. And it would take him almost five days until he finally had another lucky run-in with the Rattlesnakes...

Meanwhile in Dirt...

Nobody was able to sleep the night young Phillip got murdered in front of the whole town.

Sen sun was setting and all that could be seen was the halfcircle slowly disappearing beyond the horizon. The rest of the townspeople was huddled together further down the street. Phillip had three guns pointed at him in front of the saloon. The townspeople who didn't solemnly stay quiet and prayed for a miracle, was shouting and protesting. Some tried to convince Rango to let them switch places with the kid.

But Rango just laughed at them, turned to Phillip and pointed his gun at him too. Making it four guns pointing at the kid. Phillip tried not to cry, but the fear in his eyes was too strong and his tears kept falling to the ground.

"Sorry kid, blame your good for nothing sheriff!" He said before pulling the trigger. The bullet hit the young kangaroo rat between the eyes. Rangos eyes had been cold, lifeless. He didn't even know how the spell the word remorse. Or mercy for that matter...

Priss looked at the family of kangaroo rats, huddled together in the corner. Seeking comfort among each other and mourned over the loss of the oldest son. Priss looked away again. She couldn't stand it.

The whole town was bundled up together in a large prison cell in the prison. They had taken away all the bars between the many cells and made it into a single big one. Priss had heard what happened since she and sheriff Rango left to search for the Diego posse; It all started after Beans said she saw strangers head for the town, and they arrived shortly after. It was without a doubt the same black clad stranger from the posse, and this time he was in company of the rest of the posse gang along with five new faces; Bentley the hyena, Scrange the blackrat, the two porcupines Fledge and Flitch and a mean coyote apparently called Hicks. It didn't take long until they started shooting. At first, it seemed like the Dirtonians were winning, but out of nowhere a big snake just popped from the ground and killed off three men in one single row. With the black and red snake on their side, the outlaws took over the town and kept everyone as hostage. Except for the mayor, they decided to kill him too.

Priss frowned. She never saw the snake out there among the other crooks. Wonder where she was now?

She made her way to Doc, Gus and Woodrow. Doc had been taking care of both Gus and Woodrow as well as he could, but neither Rango nor his gang would let him get his medical tools.

Gus' wound was quickly patched up, Woodrows injuries however, were more serious.

"That's all I can do for him now... But if he don't wake up soon, I fear he never will!" Doc said and frowned. Priss slowly nodded. Gus looked really worried and kept tugging at the tip of his ear.

Poor Gus, Priss thought. She knew how it felt to see the best friend lying lifeless on the floor, without anyone being able to if he was going to make it or not. She remembered how it felt when Wounded Bird got shot by Rattlesnake-Jake.

Suddenly the gate to the prison cell was unlocked and yanked open. Everyones attention fell on the bobcat who had opened the door. Sam pointed at Priss.

"The boss wants to talk to you..."

*******

… Yeah that's it for today folks ^^... Hehe, cliffhangers, my favorite (\/)

**... Anyway, see ya'll next time!**

Delilah OUT!


	15. Welcome to the Gang!

**WARNING: GIGANTIC MAMMOTH-CHAPTER!**

WHOOO I'm back :D! If any of you guys also goes to my dA page, you might have noticed that I FINALLY have started to upload some pictures :D! So far I've only managed to photo and upload my MLP OC, Blake, Jolene and Bountyhunter Rango and a his men, but there will be more, I promise ^^. 

**And its a bit annoying, I've done tons of character sketches of some of the characters in the collab fic me, Rob and Niko are doing, but Rob has asked me not to spoil too much before the story's even finished :(... Aaawwe... Hopefully I'll get permission to upload pic of the main character though... I really like her, she's awesome and hilarious xD!**

**Oh, and a response to StonecoldAphrodite: Yep, I know. He's the assiest of holes xD! Plus there will be more of douchyness from him... Just you wait and see :MWAHAHAHAHAHA:**

**Anyway, here comes chapter 15 ^^. It's a REALLY long chapter solely with Priss in it so enjoy :D!**

*** Chapter Fifteen : Welcome To The Gang! ***

Priss frowned and slowly stood up from the ground. What did he want with her now? She slowly obeyed and went through the prison door and jumped slightly when Sam slammed the door shut.

Priss looked around the corner to look inside the sheriffs office and saw Rango sit on sheriff Rangos chair, his legs rested on the table and he had a glass of water in his hand. With the other hand he slowly caressed Beans waist. Beans tried to move away from him, but Rangos grip hardened and he pulled her closer, trying to give her a kiss on the cheek.

"Git off!" She hissed through her teeth and reached for the glass in his other hand, but Rango quickly drank up the water and laughed at her.

"Sorry, but these clothes are my only set. Don't want to ruin 'em, do ya?" He smiled and ran his hand up her back. Beans growled silently and was about to hit him when she froze and became still with her large eyes staring emptily at something far beyond.

Rango withdrew his hand. "What the...?" He said and raised both of his eyebrows in surprise.

Sam cleared his throat and Rangos attention turned to the two of them instead. Rango frowned and pointed to Beans.

"Does she always do that?" He asked, a bit dumbstruck.

"Sometimes, yeah..." Priss answered distastefully. She clenched her fists and managed to bring enough selfcontrol to not jump on the lizard in front of her and rip his tongue out with her bare hands. She settled for only imagining it in her head.

"Freaky... I like it!" He grinned, and Priss imagined herself taking his ripped out tongue and showing it back down his throat.

"Leave Beans alone!" Priss silently growled and her eyes hardened.

"Why? She almost shot me, y'know! I like that in a woman!" Rango shrugged and stood up from the chair.

Priss instinctively brought her hand down to her waist to grab her guns, but all she found was air. She cursed when she remembered that Rangos goons had taken 'em before. Rango laughed at her, making her cheeks turn a brightly red color and she growled in embarrassment.

"What do you want with me?" Priss asked and took a step back, almost bumping into Sam. Sam moved to the side and hardened his grip around the shotgun.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'd better get right to it, eh?" He said and poured a new glass of water to himself. "Actually, I was going to ask you one thing before I ask you the real thing; why in hell did that nitwit choose you as deputy?" He exclaimed skeptically and his hands flew up in the air in a wide shrug. "I don't get it! To be frank, I didn't think that moron could make good decisions! Just look, it's his fault that I'm here after all..." He brought the glass to his lips and drank while looking at her with a raised brow, waiting for a response.

"Because I was nagging, and the last deputy got shot. He didn't die, but he is unable to perform his duties as a deputy..." She simply answered, thirstily eying the glass. She was thirsty, really thirsty. And she wasn't probably not the only one, the two men guarding the prisoners, Bentley and the rat, refused to give them water unless Rango said so.

Rango nodded to her answer and put down the empty glass.

"Just wonderin'..." he said and poured up some new water. "I've got a suggestion for you; As you know, this dusk I'll have to select a new victim for your sheriffs slugginess. I've noticed that none of you folks like that idea, so I've been doin' some thinkin'. If you were to join my crew of merry men, I'll stop the killing." He handed the glass to Priss. She looked from him, down to the glass and then back again. Not taking the glass. "I need someone like you around here! You are the first female deputy I've met, and still you've got more guts than most of the outlaws I've gunned down before."

Priss didn't feel flattered, not at all. She crossed her arms and just kept staring at him with hatred seeping eyes and a frown on her face.

"I take your silence as a no..." Rango said, clearly disappointed and emptied the glass of water that Priss refused to take. "Its okay!" He said and shrugged. "If I were you though, I'd spend as much time as possible with the folks in there. Who knows who might be next?" He added with a soft giggle.

"Lemme get this straight; if I join you, you'll stop killing off my friends?" Priscilla cautiously asked and raised an eyebrow. "Why would you want me to join? Except because you think I've got guts? Aren't I one of the enemies?"

"Nope, I've got nothing against you..." Rango put the empty glass down on the table with a "whack" and smiled smugly. "I need more people! You should see this as an honor, I ain't just hirin' anyone y'know! Even Bentley the nutcase has some hidden talents!" He said and sat down in the chair again. "What'll it be? Yes or no?" He said and placed his fingertips against each other.

"Sure, however, I've got one more condition..." Priss said, crossed her arms and leaned heavily on her right foot. "That you leave miss Beans alone! She belongs to Rango, OUR Rango!"

Rango didn't budge. " I know that already..." He said and kept the smug grin on his face. "I just think she's too much fun, though..." He thought for a while, but then he agreed with a nod. "Sure, whatever! Welcome to the troop!" He nodded for Sam to take Beans away to the other. Except, he wasn't sure how to handle it as she still was frozen solid.

"Fine, just wait 'til she wakes up..." Rango mumbled. "Ey! Hicks!" He called and the coyote came into the office. "Show our new friend here the way, eh?"

Hicks turned to the young mouse and skeptically raised an eyebrow. "Fine, come here..." He eventually said with his dark voice and grinned, showing all of his sharp teeth. Priss didn't let that scare her, but turned to Rango again.

"Can I at least have my weapons back?" She asked and clenched her teeth together when the lizard shook his head.

"Sorry, but I can't trust you enough yet! You'll have to make it without 'em!" He answered and shrugged. Priss nodded and followed Hicks across the street to the saloon.

They went through the doors just as Bentley was sent flying out of the window. The mangy hyena laid on his back on the ground and laughed his ass off for no apparent reason. Hicks frowned and turned to the pack inside the saloon.

"Alright, who threw him out this time?" He asked and shook his head. Everyone pointed at one of the two porcupine brothers. "Fledge... Why did you do that?" Hicks sighed. Fledge said something on spanish and shrugged with a sly smile on his lips.

"He said he wanted to see what happened" Flitch translated, uninterested in his brothers shenanigans and wiped his revolver clean with a filthy napkin.

"Hay! Did ya see that!" Bentley suddenly exclaimed and staggered back into the saloon. "I was flying!" He sounded way to happy for someone who just got flung through a window.

"Well, yeah. Great job Fledge, now he'll never shut up about it!" Hicks growled. "Anyway, apparently, this lady is now a part of us. Make her feel right at home, guys" And with those last words, Hicks grinned in a sly smile and left through the doors.

Everybody was quiet, some of them snickered. Priss ignored them and walked up to Buford. The ruffians decided to let Buford stay as the barkeeper. The poor guy looked terrified, both because they had probably threatened to kill him if he didn't keep the liquor coming, and that Priss now apparently were one of them.

"Hey, Buford" Priss said and sat down on one of the worn bar chairs.

"Priscilla..." Buford replied with a nod. "The usual?"

Priss nodded and took the glass of cactus juice that he poured for her. Suddenly she felt the men gang up behind her and squeezed the glass tighter to not turn around.

"Are you sure lassies like you should drink that stuff?" Scrange asked in a mocking tone.

"Why not? You're drinkin' it, aren't ya?" Priss answered and took a sip of the amber colored liquid.

Bentleys laughter roared in the small saloon and Scrange scowled. Priss ignored them and kept drinking, but a small grin played on her lips.

"Haha, seems like we've got a little joker on our hands here, eh?" Flitch said and took his eyes off the gun.

"Yeah, bloody hilarious!" Scrange said and was annoyed by the sight of her back. "Can't you at least turn around when I'm talking to you?!" He did the mistake and put his clawed hands on her shoulder. She quickly spun around and emptied the cactus juice in the fat rats face. Scrange gasped and tried to rub it out of his eyes, but while he did that, Priss clenched her fist and punched him on the nose. Hard.

The rat flew backwards unconscious and landed on a table, breaking the cheap furniture. Everyone was quiet for a while, but then Bentley began laughing again and this time the rest of them joined in.

"I think she'll do just fine..." Flitch said and put the revolver in its holster and stood up. "Welcome to the gang, miss...?"

Priss hesitated, but then she said: "Priscilla... But Priss is just fine!"

"Alright then, Priss. Since our friend here so rudely made you lose your drink, let me get you a new one" He said and gave Buford a threatening look. Buford sighed and poured up a new glass to Priss. She took it and emptied it in one sweep.

"The name's Flitch. Over there is my brother Fledge, just don't start talking to him. He'll never shut up, and since he can't a single word of English means that I'll have to translate everything that comes out of his mouth. The annoying canine over there is Bentley and he..."

"FELINE!" Bentley exclaimed with a huge grin.

Flitch rolled his eyes and continued: "As you already can tell, he might be a bit... enervating sometimes... His friend, the rat you send to dreamsland, is called Scrange and the coyote from earlier is Hicks. He's been Rangos friend for ages, and I wouldn't mess with him if I were you" Flitch turned to Bentley; "What're you standin' 'round for? Wake him up already!"

Bentley nodded and walked up to the unconscious rat. Suddenly they heard a worrying sound; Bentley undoing his belt buckle.

"No, Bentley, NO! Use water! WATER!" Flitch shouted.

"Dios mió!" Fledge moaned and facepalmed.

"MWAHAHAHA! Just kidding, man!" Bentley laughed gleefully and took the spittoon and was just about to pour its content over Scrange when Flitch interrupted him again.

"No! Bentley, just... No... Aargh! Whatever, I'll do it!" Flitch angrily took the dishwater Buford kept under the counter. Priss was still sitting on the chair and tried her best to supress the laughter that was building up inside of her. Flitch gave the bucket to Fledge, and Fledge walked over to Scrange and Bentley and poured it over the rat. He woke up at once.

"I'm awake! I'm awake!" He shouted and sat up. "What have you done?!" He growled

to Fledge when he discovered that he was soaked with dishwater.

"Don't complain! If we hadn't stopped Bentley you would have been covered in piss and molten tobacco by now!" Flitch grinned and Bentley laughed again and put down the spittoon back on the floor.

"Nice, mate. Nice..." He mumbled and massaged his nose. "Why does my face hurt?" He more or less asked himself that, but then he remembered and looked around for Priss. When he found her, he stood up and growled.

But before he could draw his gun, the two doubledoors swung open and Rango stepped in, shortly followed by Hicks, Sam was left to watch the townspeople.

"Ah, good! I see you have introduced yourselves!" Rango said and his face was once again cleaved by that eerie grin. "Errm, why is Bentley so close to the spittoon? Its discomforting to see..." Rango frowned and backed away.

Bentley looked from the spittoon to Rango and then back again. He chuckled and went back to the bardesk, grabbed one of the spiky bottles and drank its contents.

"Thats better, I guess... Scrange? Why are you standing on a broken table?" Rango sighed and shooked his head when the rat realized what he was standing on and stepped off. "I've said it before; I don't want you nitwits to go around destroyin' my town! I saw the broken window, who did that?"

"Oh, it was me!" Bentley said and waved with the bottle in the air, causing cactus juice to splash everywhere. "Fledge helped me to fly through the window!" He smiled even wider.

"And it was that mouse! She punched me so I landed on the table! It's not my fault!" Scrange defended himself and brushed splinters of his west.

Rango sighed and turned to Hicks. "Honey, I told you we should've sent the kids to boarding school!" He joked and Hicks grinned a lopsided smile.

"Well, anyways!" He turned to his men again. "There has been some changes here! First of all, I won't kill a someone every nightfall. I know what I said, but or else I would have gotten little miss deputy here to join. Second, I'm thinking of letting the townspeople out at day, but that would require that three of you would have to watch them, and if anyone does anything you don't like, just throw 'em back in! Right, any questions?"

Silence. Rango nodded and snapped with his fingers. "Alright, what're y'all standing around here for then? Get back to your jobs! Fledge, Flitch, you get the first watch along with Sam. Priss, you and Hicks will cleanse the town of any firepower you can find. Bentley, Scrange, you two will help the good ol' Doc with anything he needs! We've got a dying man on our hands y'know!"

Priss couldn't believe what was happening. Was Rango trying to pull something on her? Why did he do all this for these people. She frowned. She wouldn't trust this reptile. She'd rather die!

Actually, the following five days went pretty well. Better than Priss had thought it would...

Rango held his word, and stopped the assassination of the innocent Dirtonians and he even allowed them to walk around the town and continue with their business. As long as they didn't leave the town.

And, despite how much Priss hated herself for thinking that way, she actually started to like Rangos men. She still hated the outlaw bountyhunter with all her heart, but some of his crewmen were actually quite charming, like Fledge, Flitch and Bentley. Especially Bentley. He could be extremely annoying, but he had his golden moments.

She had also learned that it wasn't Rango who had gunned down Woodrow and Gus, but Sam. But when she asked him about it, he would just turn his back to her and ignore her.

Speaking of Woodrow, ever since Doc got his hands on his medical equipment, Woodrows state had skyrocketed and he gained consciousness again after several days. He wasn't awake for a long time, only long enough so he could eat something small and Gus could tell him where they were and what happened. He didn't tell him that Rango had taken over the town. He didn't want to load too much on his weak friend. But according to Doc, Woodrow would probably be fine within a few weeks.

The news made both Priss and Gus sigh with relieve.

But there was one thing that bothered Priss. Something that bothered her a lot; she had been here with the outlaws for five days, but she had never seen the snake they talked about. When she tried to ask anyone about it, they just shrugged. They didn't deny her existence, but nobody seemed to know where she was. Only Rango, but he would only answer with a laugh or a smug smile.

But later that day, Ergil made a mistake. A huge mistake.

The black bobcat had managed to get his hands on a revolver that he saw in one of the rooms on the upper part of the hotel. More exactly; in the room that Priss lived in. He didn't give it much thought though, and decided to pick it up.

Later that day, he made his move. He had gotten up to the roof of the saloon, claimed that he was there to fix the hole that Buford had been complaining about for so long. He let the guns pipe rest on his arm and took aim just as Rango stepped out into the street. The black clad lizard didn't notice the assassin, since Beans just walked by. He tipped his hat to her and grinned. She snorted and ignored him.

Ergil took a deep breath, aimed at the lizard and squeezed the trigger. But just as he fired, something thin and black emerged from the sand and grabbed Rango by his feet and yanked, caused him to fall on his back. The bullet zinged past and hit the sand. This time Rango noticed the gleaming pipe on the roof and brought out his gun. Before Ergil could take another shot, Rango fired his gun. The bullet hit Ergil in the shoulder and he roared in pain. Suddenly he lost his footing and tumbled down on the balcony. When he looked up, he looked straight into the muzzle of Sams shotgun.

Rango was enraged. "That was A LITTLE UNCALLED FOR, don'tcha think?!" He shouted to the bobcat and caught the gun as Sam tossed it down to him. Rango noticed that there were a name scratched into the handle of the gun; Priscilla.

"Well, well, well..." He chuckled and looked around for the mouse. Everyone had gathered around to see what the commotion was about and when he saw her standing among the rest of the people he shouted her name. Priss flinched, but came to him. He held out the gun for her.

"Lookin' familiar?" He snickered. Priss frowned and examined the gun. She had never seen it before. But when she saw her name scratched into the handle, she started sweating and her heart rate picked up. She knew what he must be thinking.

"I-I've never seen this gun before! I-I swear!" She stuttered.

"Then how come it has your name in it?" He hissed. "I don't appreciate liars in my crew..."

"I don't know! Someone must've scratched my name on it!" Priss calmed down a bit and made eye contact with Rango. His piercing yellow eyes were darkened with anger, but she didn't back down. "But I'm tellin' ya, I've never seen this gun before! Besides, I don't even touch Smith & Wesson! Everyone knows that a Colt is much, much better!"

Rango couldn't help but to laugh. "Really?!"

"Hey! Don't diss S&W, girl!" Bentley shouted with his wide smile.

Rango kept laughing and slapped his hand on his thigh. "Alright, alright! I'll let you go for this time!" He said and dried some tears from the corners of his eyes. "Oh, and by the way, thanks for saving me, girl!" Rango said. Priss frowned and was about to question that when something large and dark emerged from the sand. The long red, black and yellow striped snake shot up from the ground and spun herself around Rango in a protective coil. It was a coralsnake. She looked down on Rango with large, greenish yellow eyes and her dark tongue rapidly shot out of her mouth. She didn't say anything, but when Rango put up his hand in front of her, she rubbed her snout on his palm like some lovesick roadrunner before she dove head-first back into the sand. Soon, signs of the snake were completely gone. Rango turned to the people of the town again.

"It seems like I've been too soft on you guys..." He said with a darker voice than usual and began pacing back and forth. "Sure, I was a bit naughty there in the beginning, killing that child and all. But still, I've been kinda reasonable, haven't I? Not many people would give their hostages the freedom to walk around freely. And this is the thanks I get? As soon as you get the chance, you'll try to assassinate me? That's not fair, isn't it?" He stopped. "Its almost as if you'd want me to punish you for your sheriffs sluggishness?" He said and looked at the horizon with a cruel smile across his face. "As a matter of fact, the sun is setting, isn't it?"

A worried mumble spread over the town. Priss interrupted. "No! You promised that you would stop if I joined!" She protested and placed herself between the Dirtonians and Rango.

"But that was before your little friend over there tried to kill me. I've gotta admit though, that took me by surprise!" Rango said with shrug.

"I won't let you!" Priss yelled and took a step forward.

Rango frowned. "Well, that's just too bad. And I guess we'll have to help you to get out of the way then..." He said and looked at Fledge and Flitch. The two porcupines grabbed Priss and tried to pull her away from the street. She tried to fight back, but the they were both stronger than her.

"That's better. Now good folks, I wanna see y'all in a nice, orderly heap in front of me here, now!" Rango shouted to the townspeople, who didn't have any choice but to obey. Even Ergil came down eventually. He felt so stupid and angry with himself that he just kept looking on the ground and clenched his fists, not saying a word.

"Listen up, I want y'all to know something; this isn't something I usually do, believe it or not, but I'm afraid I have to. You need to learn that I'm not joking around here, I'm dead serious!" Rango said once everyone had been gathered. "Now, the one of you who deserves this the most is you, mister!" He said and aimed his gun at Ergil. Ergil didn't speak up. "But, what would your lesson be? No, I think I'll spare you for now..." He said and let the hand holding the gun fall to his side. Ergil frowned and looked up at the lizard.

Rango started looking around, then he smiled widely and said: "Hey, where's the spider?"

Mr Blacks eight eyes all opened widely and he tried to crouch down to hide among the rest of the people. But Hicks saw him and forced him to stagger out on the street. All the eight, long legs of the black spider was shaking with fear and he took off his hat.

"I've always wanted to kill one of you spiders, I've heard you roll up into a ball when you die, is that true?" Rango asked with a sly grin and lifted the gun once again.

Mr Black didn't answer, he just grasped the hat even firmer and nervously swallowed.

"No! Just stop it already! You don't have to!" Priss exclaimed and elbowed Flitch in the chest. He let go in surprise, allowing her to writhe free and try to run. Too bad Fledge was there to stop her.

"Maybe, maybe not. But I do it just in case..." Rango mumbled and pulled the trigger. The shot echoed and Mr Black stiffened before falling to the ground with a big hole in his head. Bentley slammed his hand on his face and giggled.

People backed away and some screamed. Ergil cursed loudly and put his palm on his face.

No! Not another one! Priss thought and closed her eyes.

Rango chuckled contently when the spiders many legs were pulled by an invisible force toward the body, forming a ball. "I was right!" He exclaimed and spun the revolver around on his finger before putting it back. "This will continue until your beloved sheriff comes back. If that coward comes back that is!"

He turned around. "Priss, Bentley! Dispose of this bug!" He said.

"Actually, it's an arachnid..." Bentley said and shrugged.

Priss almost gagged when she and Bentley lifted the dead spider on a wagon to transport him out of town to bury him.

"Hey, isn't this guy the undertaker?" Bentley asked and jumped easily up on the driver seat.

"Yeah. He was..." Priss answered and sat up next to him. She tried not to look back.

Bentley laughed out loud. "And now here he is, already getting cold in the back of his own hearse! Ironic, isn't it?" He said and flicked the reins, causing the javelin to take a surprised jump into the air before starting to walk and pull the wagon. Priss gave him a killing look. He noticed it and chuckled. "Don't take death so seriously! I mean, we're all going to die sooner or later, why not make the best out of the situation, amirite?"

"Oh, I'm sorry if I'm not in the mood for jokes right now, Bentley. But someone who has been there my entire childhood just got mercilessly MURDERED right in front of me!" Priss hissed and looked away.

"Yeah, I know that feeling, sis! But I'm telling ya, you'll forget about it after a year or too! Just keep laughing and it will keep the ghosts away!" He said happily and his head was bobbing from one side to the other, as if he listened to a catchy song. "Believe it or not, but I've lost a whole bunch of important people!"

"Really? Who did you lose?" Priss asked, but she didn't get an answer. When she turned to face him again, she became chocked by what she saw; for the first time ever, she saw Bentley without a smile plastered on his lips. He was solemnly looking down on his feet, a single teardrop slowly running from the eye down his long nose.

"Bentley?" Priss asked worriedly and put her hand on his shoulder. He snapped back to reality and the smile returned as he wiped the tear away with his dirty coat arm.

"Nothing! I'm just allergic to javelins, that's all!" He said, just as happy as before.

"Really?" Priss frowned and withdrew her hand.

"Yeah, really!" He cocked his head to her direction.

"Well, I dunno. You looked pretty off there, almost as if you were thinkin' 'bout somethin'?" Priss said, sounding more worried than she intended to.

"Thinkin'? Moi? I don't think we've met; Hi! I'm Bentley!" He laughed and stretched out his paw (his left paw...) to shake hands with her. "Thinking on the wrong things can make you all sad and depressed, I prefer not to think so much!"

"No kiddin'..." Priss mumbled. Bentley ignored her and continued babbling:  
"I don't like depressing thoughts! I prefer to stay happy! And the only way to do that is to cast all the troublesome thoughts away and laugh! That's why I laugh so much, I guess..." He said, the last part he added quieter, almost mumbling. "Besides..." He said and made the javeling halt next to the graveyard and jumped down. "Whaddya say we bury this sucker real quick and we might be back in time for a couple o' drinks before its time for the night shift, eh Prissy?"

Priss cast a glance at the dead body in the back of the wagon. It felt like someone had punched her hard in the stomach and she found it hard to breathe. She couldn't believe Mr Black was gone... He had always been there, ever since she was a baby. While the other kids thought the undertaker was creepy and made up stories about him eating children and then made clothes of their hides, Priss had actually like him. He claimed he didn't like children, but he was always so sweet towards her, gave her candy and gave her permission to watch him make a coffin.

She put her hand on her nose and tried to stifle a sob. But she couldn't help the few, small tears that rolled down her cheeks. She heard Bentley giggle next to her.

"What?" She yelled with a shaky voice.

"Oh its nothing!" He said and shrugged. "I just didn't think you were capable of crying! Or show any emotion at all!"

"I'm not crying!" She hissed and wiped her tears.

"Sure, and I'm not really a hyena! I'm a chipmunk! A secret agent chipmunk! Here to spy on you!"

Priss couldn't help but to let out a halfhearted laugh. "That's just silly!" She laughed and snivelled.

"So is pretending to be emotionless like rocks! Or girls who falls in love with sparkly things!" Bentley said and rolled his eyes. "Anyway, the damn vultures have arrived! Lets get your friend into the ground before they get to feast on a crème brulee a lá spider!" Bentley paused. "On second thought, he looks a bit more of a Swedish meatball?"

"Please, stop calling him different foods!" Priss sighed and got the shovels from the wagon and threw one of them to Bentley.

He caught it and smiled. "Sorry, I just can't help it! I'm so hungry I could eat pretty much anything right now! But no more beans... Not that I don't like Beans, she's cool! I mean beans as in... eh, beans! Kidney beans, white beans, black beans, y'know? Sure, its yummy at first, but after a couple of months of nothing but warmed up beans and having to ride next after Scrange, you sort of lose the appetite for 'em!" He put the shovel in the ground and started digging. "You know what I like? Pancakes! You've gotta be crazy to hate pancakes! Pancakes with whipped cream and strawberry jam! I've only ate it once, but boy I loved it! Wouldn't mind eating it for the rest of my life!" He kept talking while digging the hole, while Priss laughed uncontrollably.

Just as they were burying the remnants of Mr Black, the undertaker, Rango left to head back to Dirt, heavily disappointed.

**… Wow, I'm NEVER writing a chapter of this size again! Ever D:! I've been****working forever on this! But I've gotta admit, I think it's one of my favorites ^^! Hehehe, I just had to have Bentley say "or like girls who falls in love with sparkly things" when talking about being emotionless xD (sorry to any butthurt Twilight fans xD)**

**You guys know what to do now right? That's right; REVIEW xD! I've been working my ass off on a 6-page long chapter, the least you can do is give me a couple of words of feedback, right ;)? Don't be afraid to come with suggestions :D! **

**Oh, and sorry for killing the spiderman, but I just had to take someone from Priss' childhood to make the dialogue between her and Bentley possible ^^"... 'cuz it will have a pretty major role in the future, but I'm not telling why :3 *MWAHAHAHAHAHA!***

**Delilah OUT!**


	16. Finally! A clue!

**Hehe, sorry for the long chapter last time xD! I tried to split it, but it probably wouldn't work so I just made it into a MASSIVE überchappie instead ^^! Don't worry, this chapter isn't a monstrosity like the Priss chappie ;)**

**Oh, and I'm sorry if I've screwed up the timeline, but this takes place on the fourth day ^^!  
**

***** Chapter Sixteen : Finally! A Clue! *****

Rango had no idea which direction he should search in first. Frustration and anger were boiling inside him. Four days! That's how long he had been searching! Not a single clue! Nada! Zip! It was like the Rattlesnakes had disappeared out of thin air!

He stood in a waypoint between two signs. One pointed to Nugget, a town that nowadays were more or less inhabited by bandits and roughians only. There were a possibility that the real murderer went there and the Rattlesnakes were headed for it. Then again, in the opposite direction lied the Mexican border. Where any sane outlaw wanted in North America would go. Rango moaned and rubbed his head. All this thinking made his brain hurt!

Arrow sighed and shook her feathers, bored out by her temporary masters inability to make a decision before next year. Sick of waiting, she headed to the Mexican border. The surprised Rango yelped and nearly fell out of the saddle.

"No no NO! Where do you think you're going?" He said and pulled the reins, forcing her to stop. The bird made an annoyed chirp and turned her head to face the chameleon.

If he could understand her, he would see the brightly, sand colored snakescale that she tried to point at. Herself wasn't 100% sure if it belonged to Blake, but it was something at least!

"We can't be sure if they went this way! I am the more developed specie here so I decide where we go!" He said and steered her to the other direction. "Lets search Nugget first. At least we might get some information!"

Arrow sighed. She had been to Nugget twice, second time she almost got stolen! This wasn't going to be pretty, considering that most of the inhabitants were allergic to sheriff stars! Didn't matter if the sheriff himself were out of his county and unable to perform his duties in town, he was still a man of the law and were rarely treated nicely by 'Nuggetonians'. To put it gently.

Arrows premonition turned out to become reality; Rango immediately went to the saloon for information. A huge mistake, for he was easily recognized as the sheriff of Dirt. But before he got chased out of town by a crazy mob, he managed to overhear someone mentioning that he met the Rattlesnakes on their way to Dry Creek.

It all ended with Rango getting jabbed in the eye by a pissed off Arrow. Not only was he right about the way, he had also forced her to run so fast her feathers got ruffled, just to avoid getting lynched.

Next thing they did was to head off to Dry Creek. Dry Creek was a town even smaller than Dirt. Once when Bad Bill were harassing the town, the sheriff of Dry Creek, Louie Graham, sent for help. But only Rango from Dirt answered their call and helped Louie and his two deputies, the Anderson twins Elton and Tarrant, put Bad Bill and his gang behind bars. Even though they managed to escape only a few days later.

But ever since then, Louie and Rango had been great friends and Louie had promised to one day repay Rango for his deeds.

They arrived in Dry Creek by nightfall, where they were greeted by sheriff Louie and the twins. The short and chubby kangaroo rat shook Rangos hand just as he dismounted.

"Well ah'll say! Sheriff Rango! It's been forever since I saw yer mug 'round here! What brings ya here, ol' boy?" He said and Rango nearly dropped his hat due to the ferocious handshake.

"I'm here to ask you if..." Rango began, but he was interrupted by Louie.

"That's a mighty fine runner ya got there, Rango! What happened to yer ol' one?" He asked and nodded to Arrow. Arrow heard the compliment and shook her head so her majestic plume waved. She made herself taller by stretching her long legs and slightly curled her neck.

You vain bastard... Rango thought. "I'm just borrowing her from... a friend. Excelsior damaged his knee the other week!" He answered. Louie nodded.

"Well, why don't ya come over to stay at mah place? Ah bet Mindy will have the dinner ready anytime now!" The sheriff of Dry Creek said and flung an arm around the much taller chameleons shoulders.

"Yes, I'd love to! But, what about my roadrunner?" Rango asked and looked back at Arrow, who was showing off for the two twins.

"Oh don't ya worry! Mah deputies will take good care of her, won't ya boys?" Louie shouted to his deputies and they nodded in unison.

Rango frowned. "I don't know, sheriff. She can be quite a handful..."

"Nonsense!" Louie scoffed. "I'm pretty sure they can handle her. They ain't rookies y'know!"

"I hope you're right..." Rango mumbled and nodded as the both sheriffs left the twins with the... spirited roadrunner.

Later that night, Rango told Louie about his search for the three snakes. Leaving out the part about the whole town of Dirt being held hostage by a psychopathic massmurderer and his henchmen...

Louie nodded solemnly and stroked his mustache. "Yeah. The snakes 'been here alright. But not Jake, thank godness for that!" He said after Rango had finished. "But Jolene and that Blake were here not too many days ago. Causin' trouble, as they always do!" He growled and shook his head.

"What did they do?" Rango asked curiously.

The other sheriff shrugged. "Well, the first thing they did in this town were to go to the general store. Or, at least Jolene did. Blake headed for the saloon. When I was called, Blake had already gulped down almost half a barrel of cactus juice and were wreaking havoc in the saloon. It began with me asking him nicely to leave. But it soon escalated and I admit that we were both threatening each other. I'll tell ya somethin', Blake's got a vocabulary wider than a well educated sailor! Luckily, before any of us could do any damage to another, Jolene entered. She apologized for her brothers behavior and managed to make Blake leave, in return for information on how to get to Skeleton Cliffs."

Rango frowned. "Skeleton Cliffs?" He asked, never even heard about that place before.

"Its a ghosttown, just about two hours journey to the southwest of here." Louie said and put his elbows on the table. "It's said to have been abandoned because there was a plague roaming the town which the natives had cursed on them. The plague could kill anyone within a few days! You would get blisters all over yer body and fever and you'd be hallucinating and bleeding from every orifice before dying a horrible, painful death!"

Mindy, his wife, put her fork down and cleared her throat. "Dear, do you really think this is appropriate to talk about during the dinner?" She said with disgust and frowned at her husband. He shrugged.

"Anyway, it's still deserted and there haven't been people there for over ten years. I wonder what kind of business the snakes got in Skeleton Cliffs?" He said and emptied his glass of cactus juice.

"Can you tell me how to get there?" Rango asked.

Louie tilted his head and frowned. "Sure. But why would ye wanna go thar? Ah mean, except to look for them snakes? It's a pretty dangerous place, even without the plague!"

"I have to find them, please tell me!" Rango insisted and slammed the desk. Louie jumped in surprise.

"Alright, alright! Easy there, sheriff!" He said and told Rango how to find the way to the ghosttown. He convinced Rango to stay over the night, though he had to go early in the morning.

Which he did.

When Rango went to the livery stable with Louie, they met the twins halfway. "I told you so..." Rango mumbled to the shocked kangaroo rat.

The twins were both covered in bruises. Elton had a nasty blackeye and Tarrant had a bandage wrapped around his head. "What in blue blazes happened to you?!" Louie exclaimed.

"I think it was Arrow that happened..." Rango stated, and the twins nodded in unison as a response.

Rango saddled and mounted Arrow, said his goodbyes to Louie and thanked him for the hospitality before he rode off to Skeleton Cliffs.

Louie and the twins stood and waved off their friend. As soon as Rango came out of sight Louie turned to the both deputies and said:

"Form a posse and head over to Dirt. I've got this naggin' feeling somethin' aint' right..."

*******

Sorry, not much action in this chappie... Well, at least sheriff Rango's got some clues, but will he find the Rattlesnakes in the ghosttown known as Skeleton Cliffs? And what will happen with the Dry Creek posse once they find out the situation in Dirt?

**I'll try to finish the next chapter as soon as I can ;)! **

**Delilah OUT!**


	17. Skeleton Cliffs

**Whoopiedoo! Next chapter xD! Chapter 17 already?! Omg, this story will be a looong one :o!**

**But thats good, right?**

**Anyway, here it is! Enjo-oy~!**

***** Chapter Seventeen : Skeleton Cliffs *****

A few hours later, Arrow and Rango arrived in the ruins of Skeleton Cliffs. The town who once had been full of life, were now a tragic reminder of the frailty of life.

The town were lying next to a tall, hovering cliff, some of the houses were even built directly on the rock. The eerie silence made Rango feel like the town was watching him, silently judging him. He shivered.

Arrow also felt a slight tense in this place. He most primitive instincts told her to turn around and run. Run away as fast as her legs could carry her, to the safety of her true master. But she ignored this feeling and kept walking forward in a slow pace, turning her head from side to side.

This is where Louie had said the Rattlesnakes where going. Rango was both hoping that they would be here, but the same time he didn't.

He gripped the reins tighter and made Arrow come to a stop. She watched him with her head tilted as he jumped down from her back and looked around. He formed his hands around his mouth.

"JAAAAKEEE!? JOOLEEEENEE!? BLAAAKEE!? ANYBODY!?" He shouted. His voice echoed over the cliff and disappeared out in the wasteland. No answer. He drooped and sighed.

Suddenly he heard something to his right. He turned around and saw something knocking an empty barrel down before disappearing behind the buildings. "H-hello?" He said and searched for his gun. Oh yeah, the other Rango had it. Darn it!

Arrow had also seen the barrel get knocked over and raised the plumage. She felt like someone was watching her from far away. Suddenly she heard a rustling sound behind the caved in general store. She quickly turned around and saw something come charging towards Rango, who stood with his back to the attacker. Completely unaware.

Arrow hissed and and just when the attacker jumped up in the air and brought out something shiny, she jumped after him and grabbed him with her talons. They both landed heavily on the ground with Arrow on top. Rango heard the ruckus behind him and turned around.

Arrow had knocked the knife out of the attackers hand and stood over him with one foot at each side. Her halfway open beak were a mere inch from the surprised attackers face and she hissed, her plumage risen.

"What? Who are you?!" Rango exclaimed, taking a surprised step back. His attacker turned his head to face Rango as good as he could, despite being held down by a giant bird.

The attacker was a skink. The long, thin lizard looked old and his silvery green color had dulled and become grayish with lighter stripes along his body. His tail was long and the tip was bluish.

"That's none of yer business!" He hissed and tried to wave Arrow away. "Yer not even s'posed to be here! Git out! Schoo!" He said and flicked Arrow on her beak. She flinched and angrily puffed up her feathers. She quickly moved one of her feet to the skinks throat. Unable to breathe, the old lizard started flailing with his arms and tried to make her let go.

"Look Arrow! One of your wingpens have snapped!" Rango said and pointed to one of her wings. She lifted her wing to inspect it and discovered to her horror that the chameleon was right. She quickly jumped away to groom herself in private.

The old skink gasped for air and massaged his throat. "That darn poultry is insane!" He gasped. He tried to stand up as soon as he regained his ability to breathe normally, but noticed that Rango stood in his way.

"Listen, friend. I am looking for someone. And I've been looking for these bastards for the nearest five days. The five worst days of my life. I'll make one thing clear for you, old timer; I ain't planning on leaving soon, so you better just make yourself useful and tell me where the three Rattlesnakes siblings are!" Rango said and crossed his arms. The skink stroked his chin and grinned.

"So, yer lookin' for Carmens kids, eh?" He said with a laugh. "Well, I know where they are!"

Rangos eyes widened. "Great! Tell me!" He wanted to know. But the skink shook his head.

"Nope! They told me to kill anyone who came here lookin' for 'em! My lips are sealed!"

Rango restrained himself from punching the lizard on his gleefully smiling mug. Instead he turned to Arrow.

"Hey Arrow! Can you believe this guy?!" He shouted to her. The bird stopped grooming her wing and looked at the chameleon who disturbed her. "This fella said you are the most disgusting, ugliest, fattest and most stupid chicken in all of the Mojave desert!" Rango continued and stepped out of the way.

The skink frowned. "No I didn't!" He defended, but it was too late.

Arrow angrily puffed up her feathers again and lowered her head in align with the rest of her body and slowly walked up to the rude lizard. Ugly? Fat? Stupid? She hissed angrily and unfolded her wings. Rango snickered and leaned on a balk that were used to support the balcony on the old hotel.

"I'd start running if I were you!" He shouted to the skink and crossed his arms again. Ready to watch the show that were going to unfold.

The skink backed a few steps. "What the...?" He said, but didn't get any further because right then, Arrow charged for him with flapping wings. Her beak open, the crest on her head furiously risen and her head low. The lizard started running.

Rango stifled a laugh as Arrow chased the poor old skink back and forth.

"Help! Call yer damn bird back! No stop it! HELP!" The skink shouted in panic as Arrow caught up on hit and pushed him back onto the ground.

"Well, I could give you a hand..." Rango said and pretended to inspect his fingernails while glancing at the fighting lizard and roadrunner from the corner of his eye. "But you didn't want to help me, so I guess there's nothing I can do..." He shrugged.

"No! Yeowch! Please, HELP! Ayee! Ah'll tell ya where... Owch! Where they are! Just PLEASE GIT THIS BIRD OFFA ME!" The lizard cried as he tried to crawl away and at the same time avoid Arrows razor sharp beak.

"Thats more like it!" Rango said and walked over to Arrow and put a hand on her neck. "Calm down now, featherbrain. You don't have to listen to this jerk! You are the prettiest bird in the whole West, and you know it!" Rango told her with a calming voice and ran his fingers under her feathers and started to scratch the bumpy skin. Arrow stopped trying to murder the man and instead she curled her neck and started to coo and dance around. Rango smiled successfully. He had discovered this little trick a few days ago, and it had saved him from getting shredded by the bird on several occasions.

"Now, you mind telling me who you are, and where our scaly friends are? Or do I have to set her free again?" Rango said and turned to the shaky old skink. The skink couldn't get his eyes off the murder-bird as wiped some blood from a scratch he got over his left eyebrow.

"The name's Harvey. And yeah... Ah know where they are. Blake and Jake are out on an errand. Jolene is here, in the old saloon..." He said and stood up. Rango tipped his hat to Harvey and turned to go to the saloon and look for the Rattlesnake sister. "Ah wouldn't go there if ah were you though!" Harvey shouted after him, causing Rango to stop.

"Huh?"

"Well, she's sheddin' her skin right now. And she tends to get a little... moody! Ah wouldn't wanna go and disturb her now!" Harvey said with a slight blush. "What is it that you want with 'em anyway?"

"That's a pretty long story, I prefer to tell it when the rest of them are here" Rango said and changed his direction. "When will the brothers be back?"

Harvey shrugged. "Tonight, tomorrow or in an hour... Ah dunno!"

Rango nodded. "Well, seems like we'll just have to wait here then" Rango said to Arrow. Arrow rolled her eyes and buffed on his shoulder, telling him to keep scratching her.

**Yep, pretty short chapter this time, sorry ^^"... Haven't got much to say, other than the usual;**

**See ya guys next time!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	18. Lizard for Lunch

**ALREADY THE NEXT CHAPTER?! AAAAAWW YYEAAAAH!**

**Lol, anyway this is pretty long too, but I hope dats okay ^^"! **

**The title has nothing to do with this chapter, but I was listening to the soundtrack when writing this and Lizard for Lunch started playing when I was trying to come up with a title xD! It's a SIGN! Lol xD**

**Not much to say... Enjoy ^^!**

***** Chapter Eighteen : Lizard For Lunch *****

"I'm sorry, Rattlesnakes. I am afraid I can't take no for an answer! You three are coming with me and... No! No buts, Blake! You three are coming with me and that's the end of it! You bust this guys sorry ass and we, the people of Dirt, will be forever in your favor! What do you say, brother?" The black roadrunner extended her talons, grabbed the chameleons waiting hand and shook it.

Harvard grunted and continued to pick whatever was left of his rotten teeth with a cactus needle. "You really ain't that clever, are ya?" He said and grinned.

Rango ignored his snarky comment. He had been practicing this forever! When the rest of the Rattlesnakes was gathered, he'd tell 'em one thing or another! They could show up any moment, so he''d better be prepared.

He had tried to communicate with Jolene, but that was practically impossible without getting eaten. Harvey wasn't kidding when he said that she could be moody around the shedding time!

And when he didn't get any contact with Jolene, he turned to talk to Harvey. Wondering who he was.

Turns out Harvey used to be the general store manager and an old friend to Carmen, the Rattlesnakes mother. The siblings grew up with their mother right outside Skeleton Cliffs and when Carmen died, the three young snakes had to fend for themselves. Harvey tried to help them as much as he could and would have allowed them to work for him if it weren't for the peoples fear of snakes. Eventually, Jake became a mercenary to support his brother and sister and a few years later even those two left. They still visited Harvey every now and then.

Harvey was one of the few lucky ones who survived the disease, and proved it by showing them his badly scarred chest, forever marked by the blisters that once covered his skin. But apart from everyone else, he decided to stay in the dying town instead of leaving it. He grew up here after all, and he was sure as hell gonna die here too!

Rango looked up at the sky. They were still outside and the sun were setting. Another sunset. Another life being claimed in Dirt. Rangos eyes threatened to fill up, but he blinked the tears away. Harvey didn't notice anything, but Arrow did. She tilted her head and clucked. She started to feel sorry for this guy. Wonder what it felt like to lose a friend every day?

Suddenly she heard a sound somewhere far away. She looked up at the sunset and saw two shapes slowly come towards them. She chirped and buffed Rango on his shoulder.

"What is it?" He mumbled and looked around. He noticed the two snakes come slithering towards the town and he immediately froze.

"What's the matter sheriff, not so tough anymore eh?" Harvey chuckled, but Arrow kicked up some dust in his eyes so the chuckle died out in a painful gasp.

Jake was the one who noticed the shady character and his roadrunner first. Blake were blabbering on and on about something, but Jake had shut him out a long time ago. He slowed down and his rattle started to calmly shake to and forth. Blake stopped and turned around to his brother.

"What's it now, bro?" He asked. Jake didn't answer. He just hissed and suddenly charged for the stranger.

Despite the long distance, Jake arrived extremely fast and Rango didn't even have time to snap out of his chock until the giant snake had wrapped himself around the chameleon.

"Who are you?! What are you...?" He shouted, but then he interrupted himself. Instead, he started laughing when he realized it was Rango. He loosened his grip, allowing Rango to breathe but not to escape. "Ya gave me quite the surprise there, sheriff..." He said and grinned so his long fangs were showing.

"Well, I'll be damned! If it ain't our good friend the sheriff!" Blake came slithering up next to his brother. "Where's your cute lil' deputy?" He said and looked around.

"Sh-she's not here! She's back in Dirt... Listen, I need you three too..." Rango said, but he didn't get to finish the sentence since Jake dropped him on the ground and turned to Blake.

"I hope you still got it?" He said and Blake nodded, wavering a small satchel with his rattle. "Great, now go and give it to her"

Blake flinched. "What?! Why me?! Why is it always ME?!" He protested and tried to give Jake the satchel.

"Because I hate your guts! And I don't want to risk my life in vain!" Jake hissed and pushed the mysterious satchel back to Blake. "You give it to her!"

Rango and Arrow watched in disbelief as the two snakes where arguing, shouting and even started to threat each other. It ended with Jake pointing his gatling at Blake. Blake hissed and slithered away in defeat to the saloon, with his rattle tightly curled around the handles of the satchel.

"Howdy, sis! I've got the ka..." Blake said and extended his tail to give the little bag to his sister. A tumble and the crackling sound of rotten tree snapping interrupted him and Jolene poked her head out of the door, where the two doubledoors where loosely hanging on their rusty hinges. Rango hadn't been able to see her before in the gloominess of the broken down saloon, but now in the open he could see that Jolene had gotten a lot duller in color and her eyes were skimmed.

"THAT'S 'BOUT TIME!" She shouted, snatched the satchel from her brother and disappeared back in. Blake relaxed and slithered back with a cocky grin.

"See? What where you so afraid of?" He said and pointed his snout to the sky.

"Me? Afraid? You should've seen yourself! You almost wet yourself, kid!" Jake said and grinned. Blake snorted and frowned.

"What was in the bag?" Rango asked.

"Kandi-sugar. She gets cravings when she sheds... " Blake said with a pained grimace.

"So, that's what ya were doin'? Went out shoppin' sweets for yer sister?" Harvey said with a chuckle. Jake turned to him and hissed.

"And what were you doing, Harvey? Sleeping as usual? You were supposed to kill anyone who showed up here!" Jake said angrily. Harvey grunted.

"I can't kill an unarmed man! Besides, isn't a good thing Ah didn't? Ya seem to know this fella, and considering ya haven't killed him soon Ah'd say you two are some kind of friends, eh?" Harvey said and crossed his arms.

"More like acquainted." Jake said and turned to Rango. "Now, what're you doin' here anyway, sheriff?"

"Huh?" Rango said and looked up. "Oh. Well there's this guy who sent me to bring you two with me to Dirt and..."

Blakes roaring laughter interrupted Rango. "Give us ONE good reason!" He said and leaned closer to Rango. The chameleon took a step back.

"Because this guy has been killing off my friends one by one since he arrived! I've been looking for you for five days!" Rango exclaimed, sounding way more scared than he intended. "He said he'll leave us alone if I found you three and brought you back to Dirt with me! Please, he has already killed a child and..."

Jake waved him off. "Sorry, sheriff. We can't leave this place until Jolene is done. I'm afraid it's something you'll have to manage on your own!" He said, completely uninterested. He started moving away past Rango.

"What?! No, Jake! Please!" Rango said put a hand on the snakes side. The giant rattlesnake hissed and quick as lightning wrapped himself around Rango again.

"I said NOT NOW! And if you touch me again I'll personally send your hide to the DEVIL!" He hissed in Rangos face and pushed the him away again. Rango landed staggering on the ground and nearly fell down, if Arrow hadn't been there to support him.

"But don't worry! We'll come!" Blake said and tilted his head.

Rango looked hopefully at the younger rattlesnake. "Really?"

"Yeah!" Blake said and nodded. "When pigs fly!" And he started laughing again.

Rangos head dropped. "Please..." He said one last time. He heard the clicking of a gatling and looked up.

Jake held his gun pointed at Rango. "I'm sorry, sheriff. I really am. But there ain't nothing we can do. There's nothing left for you here" He said calmly, with a voice that felt cold enough to make the desert freeze over.

Rango slowly got up in Arrows saddle. Arrow could feel the sadness emanating from him and it seemed to make him heavier. She squawked in discomfort.

Rango didn't say anything. He just cast a last glance at the two snakes and the old skink sitting on a three legged chair outside his old general store. Then he turned around and left as the sun vanished behind the cliff, covering a piece of the land in a long shadow.

Rango felt more scared than he had even felt in his whole life. The people in Dirt trusted him to bring the snakes back to save them. They had always been there for him. The Dirtonians was the family he never had. Not even back in the days when he lived amongst the humans as a pet!

He had let them down when he didn't have the guts to stand up against the bountyhunter then. And now, he was going to let them down even further. Rango wanted to cry, but the tears just wouldn't come. Instead he made Arrow stop. He was quiet a while, gathering his anger and eventually unleashed it all in a single, loud scream. Arrow twisted her head and looked at him with her round, yellow eyes. She tilted her head and did a silent cluck when Rango finally stopped screaming.

Hist throat hurt when he looked back at the roadrunner. He was quiet before silently whisper;

"Lets go back to your master... I think he's worried about you..."

Meanwhile in Dirt...

The town was so quiet it seemed dead. The sun had set and darkness engulfed the town of Dirt. Everyones curfew was up and the townspeople had all been taken back to the prison, where they were being kept during the night like the prisoners they were.

Ergil sat all by himself in the corner. His body ached after Rango and that coyote tried to make him talk "the old fashioned way". He was mad at himself since he totally screwed everything up. He had tried to assassinate Rango, and end this nightmare once and for all. But instead, that coralsnake had just showed up from nowhere for the second time and saved him. And now, he had caused Rango to start killing them off one by one again.

But Ergil wasn't the only one who was mad at him. Half of the town had given him the death stare all night. They knew his intentions had been for the best of them, but instead of succeeding, he had now probably doomed them all instead.

If only their sheriff could hurry up already!

Suddenly, Ergil heard something far away. He perked his ears and heard someone... singing? Or something, it could also someone with a stomachache.

The one singing was Bentley, when he returned with Priss after burying the old undertaker Mr Black. He had been singing all the way from the graveyard and Priss was starting to build up a glorious headache.

"She'll be comin' 'round the mountain when she cooomes! She'll be comin' 'round the mountain when she cooomes! She'll be comin' 'round the mountain YEAH she'll be comin' 'round the mountain when she COOOMES!" He sang as loud and falsely as he possibly could while Priss was mentally slamming him in the face with a book.

"Please Bentley! Stop singin' already!" She winced. Bentley stopped singing for a while and smiled slyly. Instead, he started humming an incredibly annoying and repetitive melody. "I told you to stop singin'!" Priss growled and pulled the brims of her hat down over her ears.

"I ain't singin'! I'm hummin'!" He teased and laughed as she tried to hit him with the handle of a shovel. He dodged it and reached out his tongue. Priss growled again. He wouldn't be smiling if she only had her guns...

As soon as they came into the town, Bentley made the javelin come to a halt and jumped down to the ground. He started to undo the harness that tied the hog-like creature to the wagon.

Priss slowly climbed down and to saw to her surprise Hicks come walking out from the saloon and walk towards them.

"Priscilla! Rango wants..." Hicks started but Priss interrupted him;

"Lemme guess; he wants to talk to me?" Priss said and folded her arms across her chest. Hicks frowned and nodded slowly. Bentley tried to stifle a giggle. "What is it he wants this time?" Priss continued.

"How am I s'posed to know? Go ask him yourself! He's in the sheriffs office as usual..." Hicks mumbled and shrugged.

Priss walked past the coyote without a word and marched right for the sheriffs office.

"Dun' worry, darl! I'll make sure we save a glass for ya!" Bentley shouted after her. She didn't answer.

Rango was leaning back on the chair as usual with his boots on the desk and had just finished a glass of water when Priss walked in. Priss cocked an eyebrow. What was the deal with him and all the water? Waterholic?

"What is it now?" She asked and sat down on the dusty chair on the other side of the desk.

"This!" Rango said and tossed the S&W revolver previously used in the assassination attempt on the desk with a loud "thud". Priss slowly picked it up. Rango had taken out all the bullets. She carefully stroked her name that were engraved in the wooden handle. "Care to tell me everything you know?" He continued with a low, almost whispering noise.

Priss looked up at the lizard and furrowed her brows. "I've already told you everything I knew! I have no idea where this weapon comes from. But I intend to find out..." She nodded towards the door that separated the prison cells from the office. "Can I have a minute to talk to the guy who tried to shoot you?"

Rango shook his head. "No use. I tried to make him talk a while ago. He ain't sayin' anythin'!" He said and looked rather unhappy.

"I know that man very well. He might tell me!" Priss said and put the gun back down on the desk.

Rango looked like he was thinking for a while, but then he shouted for Sam. The bobcat came out through the door and looked at Rango. Not saying anything.

"Give Priss five minutes alone in there" Rango said and nodded to Priss. Sam looked at her in disbelief before stepping to the side and allowed her to pass.

Priss hurried into the room and as soon as the people on the other side of the bars saw her, everyone seemed to say her name at the same time.

Priss smiled and walked up to the bar. She hadn't even spoken with any of them for days. They must have so many questions!

Which turned out to be true...

"Great to see ya again!"

"Are you with those creeps now?"

"What do you want?!"

"What's goin' on here?"

"Miss Priscilla! Are you one of the bad guys now?"

Priss didn't answer their questions, she just looked around for the large, black bobcat. She eventually saw him sitting down, leaning against a wall.

"Ergil!" Priss shouted when she saw him. He raised his eyebrows. "Ergil, I need to talk to you! Come over here!" She said and waved with her hand for him to come to the bars. He slowly stood up with a pained grunt and limped over to Priss.

"Are you okay?" She asked first when she saw the pain he was in.

He nodded. "I'm just fine! What is yer problem though?" He said, sounding slightly agitated.

"S'cuse me?" Priss said and cocked an eyebrow.

"Yeah, care to explain why ya suddenly changed sides? How come yer hangin' around with that vermin?!" Ergil demanded to know.

"Hey! I only joined to spare you guys! That's why he didn't murder any more of you!" She said and looked around the crowd. "Until you necessarily had to ruin everything!" Her eyes met Ergils and a spark of guilt flashed in them.

"Oh..." He said and looked down.

"But that doesn't matter. First of all; where did ya find that there gun? It's got my name on it, but I've never even seen it before!" Priss questioned him and gripped the bars.

Ergil looked up at her again. Or he would have if she weren't shorter than what he was.

"I found it in yer room and..." He started to say.

"My room?! What in blue blazes were you doin' in MY room?!" Priss exclaimed angrily, which made Ergil jump.

"B-but you wanted to talk to me? Didn't ya?" The adult bobcat stuttered, surprised over her reaction. "I got this 'ere note sayin' to go to room 142, that's your room innit?" He said and got out a note from the inner pocket of his long, black coat. Priss snatched it from him and read it. "It took a while for me to read it though. I'm still learnin' the basics y'know..." He added and blushed.

Priss couldn't believe her eyes. Someone had mimicked her handwriting pretty good, but it still looked like crap.

"Meet me in room 142. We need to talk."

It said. It didn't say who wrote it though. Priss looked from the note back to Ergil.

"Who gave it to you?"She demanded to know.

Ergil thought for a while. "I think it was one of 'em porcupines! Y'know, he who only speaks spanish? Can't remember the name, though..."

Priss frowned. Fledge?!

"Priscilla!" She heard someone say. A voice she hadn't heard in a while. She looked to the way the voice came from and saw Woodrow sit against the other wall. "Where's the rest of my posse?" He asked, getting right to the point.

"Gone." She answered. Not being able to answer it any better. Most of them had left after Rango shot Phillip. The rest started to disappear one by one in the following days. Bad Bill and his crooks where still around though. He had formed an alliance with Rango, but usually he stayed on the edge of the town. Making sure no one got out Or in.

Suddenly the door opened and Sam peeked in. "Your five minutes are up!" He said and held up the door. Priss turned to the rest of the folks.

"I'll get you outta this somehow..." She made a silent promise before exiting out back into the office. She still held the little note in her hand.

"Did you find out something new?" Rango asked. Priss stopped and nodded.

"Yep, I sure did!" She answered and walked out of the door and headed straight for the saloon.

Fledge had some questions to answer now. It didn't matter in what language they were answered, as long as she got the right answers. And fast!

**As you might have noticed; I'M ON A FREAKIN' ROLL, BABY! I've been writing like a lunatic these days :D! **

**Hehehe, you guys will love how this turns out x3!... I hope...**

**Sorry for another mammoth-chapter! It just sort of happened x)!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	19. I wanted answers! Not more questions!

**WHAAAT? Three updates in a row?! Gee, I think I spoiled you guys last week ;D! Well, I had another writing frenzy and wrote like a madman even during lessons so I guess that explains it :P  
Anyway, here comes the next chapter! Enjoy~!**

***** Chapter Nineteen : I Wanted Answers! Not More Questions! *****

The town suddenly seemed more alive with all the sounds coming from the saloon.

Priscilla marched through the double doors so the doors angrily slammed in the walls. She looked around. Nobody seemed to notice her arrival.

"Camptown ladies sing this song, DOO DAAH! DOO DAAAH! Camptown racetrack five miles long OOOH THE DOO DAH DAY!" The saloon was filled with the noise of Bentley and Scrange singing the 'Camptown Races' as loud as they could. Both of them had a bottle of cactus juice in their hand and it didn't take a genius to figure out just how drunk Scrange was... Bentley was just being Bentley.

Flitch, Fledge and Hicks sat around a table. Flitch tried to block the noise by shoving his fingers into his ears while his brother sat and drummed the catchy rhythm on the worn table with his fingers. Hicks just ignored the ruckus and just looked down in his glass. Lost in thoughts. Buford by the bar looked like he just wanted to shoot something. Preferably himself.

Priss stepped right up to Fledge and grabbed his poncho and threw him to the side, forcing him to look at her.

Bentley and Scrange stopped singing and everyone in the saloon turned their attention to Priss and Fledge.

"ESTÁS LOCO?" The surprised porcupine yelled.

Priss ignored him and turned to Flitch. "Translate for me!" She said and didn't wait for a response before she showed the note in the shocked Fledges face. "Lookin' familiar?" She said with a slight growl in her voice.

Flitch, wide-eyed with surprise, quickly translated the two words for his brother.

Fledge frowned. "Si!Alguien me dijo que se lo dan al lince rojo oscuro!"

"He said that someone told him to give that to the dark colored bobcat, I think?" Flitch said and took his fingers out of his ears. "Didn't hear everything"

"Who? Who told you?" Priss continued to question the surprised porcupine. Flitch translated and Fledge answered with a shrug, followed by more Spanish nonsense. Flitch nodded and translated further to Priss; "He said he couldn't see. It was early in the morning and someone just came into the room and left two notes. One with the note you hold there, the other one telling him to give it to the dark bobcat"

Hicks frowned. "What note? Care to tell me whats going on?" He growled with his gravelly voice.

"The man who tried to assassinate Rango told me that Fledge gave him this note. The note tells him to come to my room. Room 142. Apparently, all he found there was the gun." Priss explained with a slightly agitated voice.

"What? We tried to make him talk before?" Hicks exclaimed. "I bet he lied!" He continued with another growl.

"How can he have done that? Fledge didn't deny the notes legitimacy" Rango said, suddenly appearing in the doorway. He walked into the saloon with impatient strides and placed himself on one of the bar chairs. Buford sighed and poured a glass of cactus juice for him. "I don't know if this was some prank one of you did. Is it?" Rango said and picked up his glass. He let his gaze wander over his collection of outlaws and stopped when he came to Bentley. "Bentley, is this another one of your shenanigans?" He asked and drank half of his glass while waiting for an answer.

Bentley shrugged, throwing his palms up in the air. "Unfortunately, no! But I wished I had come up with it! This is hilarious!"He said and grinned widely. Rango rolled his eyes.

"Well, what're we gonna do 'bout it?" Hicks asked and tilted his hat.

"Nothing" Rango answered. "I don't think there's any way we can figure this out tonight anyway. Let's not bother with it!" He said with a smile and turned to Priss. "Priscilla, aren't you tired? It's been quite hard day for you..." He said.

"Nah, I think I'll be fine" Priss answered and crossed her arms. Even though that was the exact opposite of how she felt. The loss of her friend Mr Black greatly heaved her down. And to add insult to injury, she felt extremely bad for laughing at his "funeral"! It was just so hard with Bentley around... Why did he have to be so silly all the time?!

"Are you sure? You do look a little worn out..." Flitch said, sounding honestly concerned.

Priss frowned. "Yeah! I'm sure!" Were they trying to get rid of her?

"As a matter of fact, I think we all should hit the hay right now..." Rango said and stretched out. Suddenly his back made a small crackling noise. "Ow! My back hurts like hell! How can that chameleon guy sit in that chair?!" He grimaced and rubbed his shoulders. "Speaking of which, I hope he comes back soon! I'm starting to get a bit worried here..."

"Yeah, it would be a shame if somethin' happened to Arrow, wouldn'it?" Fledge said and rubbed his aching ears.

Rangos eyes seemed to darken. "Yeah. But he knows he's deadmeat if she gets hurt..." He mumbled and fingered on his glass.

"Why did you send her away then?" Priss asked and cocked an eyebrow. "If you're holding her so dear, then why did you send her away with one of the Wests most irresponsible men?"

"He looked like he needed someone to keep him in check. Besides, it would probably take forever with any other runner... What are you still doin' here?! Didn't we tell ya to go to sleep already, young lady?"

Priss made a sound that reminds of a mix between a snort and a grunt. "Fine! Stop naggin'!" She walked out. But instead to head for the hotel, she turned around in the alley between the saloon and the tannery, around the backside, to the small stashing room. She was sure they were trying to make her leave for a reason.

She pushed a small barrel to the side and searched trough the wall behind it. She found what she was looking for; a small plug in the wall. She smiled to herself when she pulled it out and nostalgia filled her mind. When they were smaller, her friends and her used this place to snoop on the adults when they were in the saloon, telling stories and drinking. Good times. Too bad Buford found them out and started to keep the stashing room locked. Luckily, he lost the keys a could of years ago. But by then, Priscilla and the other children were too old for that kind of stuff.

Priscilla looked in trough the small round hole and looked around. The small hole allowed her to see from the bar, she could see the back of Rango as he still sat on the bar chair, with the half emptied glass in his hand.

"Do you really believe her? I mean, it's got her name on it, after all..." Hicks said. It sounded as if he was going to say something more, but Rango waved him off.

"Of course! Her father wasn't a liar, I'm sure she ain't one either!" He said. "Aye-ayes aren't exactly known for being dishonest, y'know" Bentley started giggling. Rango frowned at him. "What is it now?"

"Hehe, aye-aye..." He snorted.

Rango sighed and turned to Hicks again."Besides, why don't ya just drop the whole thing with the gun already? You seem more worried about the assassination attempt than me!" He added with a chuckle.

"Well, you would have been dead if it weren't for Coral, y'know!" Hicks continued with furrowed brows. "

"Really?" Rango exclaimed with disbelief. "I can't believe you care more about me than I do!" He laughed. "Kinda touching, if you ask me!"

"You have to be more careful! These people WILL try to kill you every chance they get!" Hicks voice rosed.

"Don't tell me what do to!" Rango snarled and slammed the glass on the bar. "The only one I'm worried 'bout here is that darn Indian!"

Rango and Hicks began to squabble about something, but Priss had only listened to that first part. Her father? Rango had known her father?! And aye-aye? What on Earth is an aye-aye?

"Whatever!" Rango grunted and throw his hands in the air. "Bentley, you and Scrange can..." Rango began to say, but then he noticed that Scrange was completely kaput with his head on the table, snoring loudly. "Nevermind, you and Hicks could take the nightshift tonight. The kid needs his rest tonight..." Rango said instead.

Bentley did a salute. "Aye-aye, sir!" He said and walked out of the door without any further ado.

Rango looked like he rolled his eyes, but it was hard to tell from the back. "Bravo, Ben. That one was golden... Fledge, Flitch. Would'ya mind carryin' Scrange back to his room? Don't think our good host here would want him to litter the place" Rango said and looked back at Buford, who only rolled his eyes and continued to clean a small glass with the dirty rag.

"Hicks, before you leave.." Rango said as Hicks stood up from his chair to follow Bentley back to the sheriffs office. "Have you seen Coral lately? I need to talk to her about you-know-who."

"I think she's at the lake as usual?" Hicks vaguely said.

Rango nodded and watched as his men exited one by one. Eventually he said goodnight to Buford and walked out. Buford didn't reply.

Priss quietly sneaked out from the stashing room and closed the door. She looked around. Nobody's here. Good. Nobody would find out that she had eavesdropped on them! Or at least, that's what she was hoping for...

She managed to sneak back at the hotel unseen by anyone. As she lied there in her bed, no matter how tired she was, she just couldn't fall asleep. Things just got weirder and weirder. First the gun with her name suddenly appearing in her room, then the note someone wrote to Ergil to go to her room. And now on top of it all; Rango knew her father?! She clenched the sheets. She was an orphan. Found abandoned in a cabin in Montana by Wounded Bird when he was traveling the land. He took her in and raised her like his own daughter until she turned four. Then they traveled to live in Dirt. Beans, who recently had lost her father, agreed on letting Wounded Bird work on the farm her father left for her and helped to raise the little Priscilla. She didn't have any memory what so ever about her real parents. Sure, she had asked Wounded Bird several times, but he always answered that he didn't know who they where. So she had pretty much stopped thinking about them, until tonight. If Rango did knew her father, did that mean that he was an outlaw? She didn't like that thought...

Another scary thought appeared in her mind; what if Wounded Bird knew more than what he had told her? What had he been doing in Montana?!

Despite all the worrying thoughts, she actually managed to get some shuteye and drifted off into a long, dreamless sleep.

**Heh, I hope you like the idea of Rango knowing Priscillas real dad and her finding out about her true heritage, cause myself has been kinda sceptical to that ^^... But I thought "Ey, what the heck, people might like it!" and wrote it xD... Then again, I could be wrong o.O...**  
**…**

**And sorry 'bout any Spanish grammar errors. Google translate, y'know x3!  
Until next time: SEE YA xD!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	20. Tovi and Samara

**Any fellow bronies here?! Then I suggest you go read the story "On a Cross and Arrow"! I just read it, and it's one of the best MLP fanfics out there w! The mane six accidentally travels to a parallel universe where everyone has swapped genders, including themselves :D! I love it! Butterscotch, Fluttershys alter ego, is soo adorable (V)! But Bubble Berry is still best colt :3!  
...**

**Anyway, lets continue this story :3! A kinda silly and long chapter I wrote during a math class (in like, 8o clock in the morning -_-...) which, after realization, is actually kinda pointless o_o... It's basically only about Priss and her real parents... Buuuut I'm uploading it anyway xD!**

***** Chapter Twenty : Tovi And Samara *****

Sheriff Rango sat and gazed emptily at the fire in front of him. He was far away from Dirt, and getting back would probably take at least two more days. He shot a quick glance to the black roadrunner to his right. She was grooming her wings, as usual. The bountyhunter had said that Arrow was the fastest runner in the west. Excelsior was without a doubt fast, but if it came down to him and Arrow then Arrow would definitively win.

"Hey, featherbrain..." Rango said and looked back at the fire again. Featherbrain was the nickname he had given Arrow ever since day one. The day when the bountyhunter sent him unarmed into the desert to look for three rattlesnakes that, if they wanted to, not even the best tracker would find. **  
**And also the day the Dirt massacre began. How many days had it been? Five? Six? Seven? He had lost track of time, but it felt like an eternity... Wonder which ones there were that were gone now?

Arrow didn't like that nickname so she squawked angrily and looked at Rango with her head tilted and risen crest.

"Sorry, I mean Arrow..." Rango excused himself with a chuckle. "I guess, out trip's coming to an end, huh?" He slowly added. Arrow continued grooming her left wing, but she kept looking at Rango with one of her eyes. "I just... You're a pretty okay bird... I think I know why... Rango... seems to value you so much..."

Arrow stopped grooming herself again. If she had eyebrows, she would skeptically furrow them. Was the lizard trying to compliment her or something?

"You saved me back there, didn't ya?" Rango looked away from the fire and straight at the bird. Arrow did something that probably resembled a shrug. "Don't be modest! It doesn't fit you!" Rango chuckled. "But anyways, thanks..." He gave the roadrunner a faint smile before a big yawn forced his jaws open, revealing his small, rounded teeth. "I guess it's time to try and get some shuteye, right?" He said and stretched out. He was about to lean back on the ground to sleep when he landed his back on something feathery. He opened his eyes in surprise and turned around, just to see that Arrow had moved from her place and now lied on the ground behind him. He slowly leaned back and nestled himself in her feathery side. "Well, aren't you a real softie?" He teased, and Arrow replied by jabbing her beak on one of his brows.

Rango rubbed his paining brow and looked up at the dark night sky, speckled with stars. He frowned when he thought about the folks back home. But mostly, he thought of Beans. If that creep as much as touched a hair on her...

Rango slowly closed his eyes and counted to ten. No idea getting all worked up. Nighttime was time to rest. Still... He couldn't shake the feeling that he had betrayed his friends and loved ones.

He still managed to fall asleep, resting against the already sleeping roadrunner.

In Dirt...

The sun had barely began to peek up from the horizon when Coral dove up from the sand where she apparently resided and slithered into the saloon. Most of the gang had already gathered there, including Priss. Everyones attention immediately turned to the black snakeshead that popped in through the doors.

"Rango! Coral's here!" Hicks shouted to the top floor.

A discomforted grunt were heard upstairs as one of the doors slammed shut and a dazed Rango came down the stairs. The morning-Rango didn't look pretty. The fin on his head slouched and he wore an uncharacteristic white shirt with suspicious brown stains along with pale red pants, possibly pink. He looked even more creepy like this.

He sat down on the nearest table and let his head fall down on the wooden surface with a 'bang!'. But he didn't seem to feel it.

"What's it, baby girl?" He said with a drowsy voice muffled by the table.

Priss expected the snake to start talking, but instead she took her tail and started tapping it on the floor. At first, it seemed like she was just rapidly tapping the ground randomly.

"Please, speak slower, hun! I'm not even awake yet!" Rango winced and forced himself to look at her. Coral rolled her eyes and continued tapping her tailtip on the wooden planks, this time in a slower pace.

Priss stared in awe as she realized that Coral was tapping the ground, in morse! She tapped in different paces, different amount of time, creating a pattern. And Rango somehow managed to decipher it in his head.

Coral stopped tapping and Rango was quiet for a while. "Men headed this way..." Rango said out loud after a while and let his head fall back on the table. "How many?" Coral tapped the ground four more times. "Four, huh? Bentley, Scrange. Can you two go and welcome our guests? Bring 'em back unharmed!" He said and slowly turned his head to face the ones he just called.

Bentley did a comical salute. "YESSIR! We'll bring 'em back unarmed before ya even realized we were gone!"

"UnHARMED, Bentley! UnHARMED! Not unarmed! No wait, nevermind! Make it both unharmed AND unarmed! Or maybe... Meh... I dunno... Can someone hand me that there coffee? I don' even 'now what I'm talkin' 'bout anymore!"

Priss rolled her eyes and reached for a tin cup, checked if it were clean enough and signed Buford to give her the kettle on the stove. Buford handed it to her and she poured the steaming coffee the cup. She gave the steaming cup to Fledge, who in turn handed it to Hicks who finally gave it to the "dying" lizard. Or at least, the big, bad bountyhunter acted as if he was dying; his face planted on the table and slowly chanting; "coffee, coffee, coffee...", as if coffee would appear magically if he wished hard enough.

But then again, his wish did come true when he felt the warm cup in his hand. He slowly lifted the cup to his face and emptied its contents, on his head! Priss jaw flew open as she stared in shock when the lizard soaked himself in hot coffee.

"YOWCH! It's hot as HELL!" He shouted and rubbed the top of his smoking skull. "Ya could've warned me, y'know!" Well, that explained the brown stains on his shirt...

"Wh-whaat?!" Priss exclaimed with a high pitched voice. "What in tarnation?!"

Bentley giggled rather unmanly. "That explains why he reeks of coffee in the mornin' huh?" He barked.

Priss frowned. She actually never noticed. 'I hope that was awakening enough for him to realize what he's wearing...' She thought and couldn't help but to cast another glance at those eyeburning pinkish pants. So not his color...

"What? You didn't honestly think I was goin' to DRINK that, did'ya?" Rango said and cocked an eyebrow, coffee dripping down from his pointy snout.

"Well, that's what any SANE person would do?" Priss said and slightly turned her head with a disbelieving wrinkle between her brows.

"Perhaps, but that doesn't change the fact that its DISGUSTING!" Rango said and flicked the cup away and leaned back on the chair with his legs crossed on the table, his eyes closed. "Although, it IS pretty refreshing in the mornin'!" He said and shot his snout skyward.

"Yeah, but to douse yourself innit?" Priss still couldn't believe it.

"Hey! By doing that I'll avoid to have that disgusting taste on my tongue for the rest of the day and HOLY HORSEAPPLES! WHAT THE HELL?!" Rango finally noticed his pants. "WHAT THE DEVIL'S THIS?!" He exclaimed and lifted one of his legs to closer inspect the pants. "Where did these come from?! Why did I put these on?!" He said and frowned, turning to his men. "Beeentleeey?"

That's when Bentley lost it. He fell of the chair in a wild, roaring laughter and gasped like a fish for air. Hicks chuckled too and stretched out his palm to the hyena, who was writhing on the ground in uncontrollable laughter. Bentley slowly stood up and slapped his palm on Hicks.

"Well, you finally noticed..." Hicks said with a smug smile.

Rango looked bemused at his companion. "Et tu, Hicks?"

"Don't look at me like that! It was Bentleys idea!"

When his he heard his name being mentioned, he fell in a new pile on the floor and kept roaring like a madman.

"That does it!" Rango growled and pointed to the two pranksters. "No more nightshifts for you! I wanna keep an eye on you two from now on! Besides, why aren't you and Scrange out greetin' our guests already?"

"Oh yeah... 'Bout that..." Bentley said, abruptly ending his maniacal laughter, and tapped Scrange on the shoulder. "He's still drunk as a skunk!"

Scrange barely moved, he lied with his head resting on his arms and groaned slightly when Bentley touched him. Rango sighed.

"Fine, you and Hicks go then! And NO more devilry from you two, 'savvy?" Rango warned and raised an eyebrow.

Hicks and Rango threw mischievous glances at each other before nodding in unison.

Priss sighed and rolled her eyes. Sure, the guys could be really immature on the mornings, but this definitely took the cake! Of course, Bentley was the worst. But it was usually him and Fledge, sometimes even Scrange, who was behind any oddities. But this time he had actually gotten Hicks in on one of his pranks!

"In a minute, my runner has been bad in one of his legs for a couple of days. I need to check him first before we head out..." The coyote said and got up.

Rango waved him away. "Sure, sure! Just as long as you get outta here!" He mumbled and stared at his pinkish pants with a repulsed grimace.

Fledge and Flitch got out to let the Dirtonians loose while Sam remained seated on his bar chair and had a staredown with his cactus juice. Priss walked up to Rango and sat down on the chair across him.

"I need to ask you some things..." She said when he looked up from his pants to her.

"Can it wait? I keep gittin' distracted by these pants..." He said and she saw his eyes go down again.

She shook her head. "No! I need to talk to you, NOW!" She said and slammed her palms on the table, unable to stress the urgency of the matter enough.

Rango rolled his eyes. "Fine then! Spill it, sis!" He said and leaned back with his arms crossed across his chest.

"Well..." Priss started. She didn't want to admit that she had been eavesdropping on them the night before so she nervously started to think out a way to put this as discreet as possible. "Ahum... H-have you ever heard of aye-ayes?" She did a mental facepalm and wished someone would just shoot her there and now. Great, that wasn't stupid at all!

The lizard in front of her first raised both of his eyebrows. It was then followed by a chuckle that soon turned into a loud laugh. "I knew you were peeping on us!" He said as soon as he stopped laughing. Priss felt her cheeks turn hot, a darker color flashed on them.

"H-how did you know that?" She almost whispered, afraid her voice might escalate into a shriek.

"For starters, you gave up pretty soon, didn't ya? I mean, you left JUST b'cause we were naggin'? Who were you trying to fool?" Rango said with a mocking grin. Priss snorted and looked away. "You wanna ask me 'bout your ol' folks, s'at right?" Rango cocked his head. Priss looked back at him.

"Y-yeah...?" She staggered. "And... H-how do you know I'm who you think I am?"

Rango grinned. "Yep, I knew your ol' pappy alright! Tovi was his name, he was a good man! Him and his wife Samara. They were settlers, one of the last, and how unbelievable as this might sound, but I helped 'em find a settlement. They were a bit weird. I mean, have you ever seen yourself in the mirror? No offense, but those eyes of yers are just... scarring!" He said and leaned back even further on his chair. Priss cocked an eyebrow. Rango helped settlers? It DID sound unbelievable! Besides, what was wrong with having large eyes?! "We had a long trip ahead of us. Hicks can tell ya all 'bout it... and we were a pretty big pack too since Fledge and Flitch recently joined! And I'm tellin' ya all sorts of things and dangers showed up. But that didn't bother Tovi, I've never seen a braver man than him! He would risk his life for his mate anytime! He even went on a man-on-man fight with a loner Comanche in the middle of the night just to protect Samara! An' I'm sure ya know that a pissed off Comanche ain't to be messed with!" Priss nodded dully. Rango chuckled and continued. " He always got this spark in his abnormally large eyes whenever Samaras safety was threatened.

Anyway, to make a long story short; they found a nice valley in the mountains, not too far away from the nearest town, and decided to settle there. We got out money and went back to search for the Dalton brothers. We rarely heard from them again, except for an occasional letter every now and then. After a year had passed, he wrote us another letter and told us 'bout your arrival..." He paused himself to tilt his head with a smug smile and crooked brows. "I'll admit, it was kinda heartwarmin'. Hicks probably thinks that too, but he's too 'cold' to admit it, hehe..."

Priss shivered. It felt weird when he talked like that. That was so out of character!

"But shortly after that, we got another letter..." He continued, now sounding more serious and frowned. "In it, Tovi told us that Samara just passed away because of an illness that came after your birth. And he himself got badly wounded in a hunting accident, got between an elk mother and 'er calve. His wounds must've gotten infected so badly that not even his newly gained indian friend could help him!

He asked, no, BEGGED me to come and take his daughter to someone who could raise her! And what could I do? He was a friend, I couldn't turn his last wish down!" He threw his hands up in the air. "But what happened when I finally got to the cabin? That darn indian had sneak'd away with the baby. Isn't that just typical?"

"Wounded Bird...?" She whispered to herself and looked down on the tables worn surface. She looked up at Rango again. "But, how can you be so sure it's me?" She asked sceptically. "I mean, I'm not the only orphan in the West, y'know!"

Rango shrugged. "To be frank, I hardly even remembered the aye-aye couple and their kid until I saw you. Or to be precise; that unmistakeable spark." He chuckled. Priscilla blinked in confusion. "Remember when you drew yer guns at me? When I was messin' with yer sheriff, threat'nin' him with my little ol' knife? I wasn't sure before, but right then when you pointed those two guns at me, I saw it. The spark in your eyes! Clear as day!" Rango lifted his boots of the table and leaned closer. "And now I've come to realize that you are so very much like yer father. Much more than you can imagine!" He said and stood up with a sigh. "Can I PLEASE go now? I'll soon vomit on these atrocious things!" He winced.

"One more thing! Eh, what's an aye-aye?" Priscilla asked a bit dumbfounded and twiddled her thumbs.

Rango shrugged. "To be frank, I ain't got a single clue!" He said just as Hicks walked in.

"Bad news, boss. He still won't put weight on his leg!" Hicks said, which made Rango stare blank faced at the coyote for a few seconds before groaning loudly and slammed his palm over his eyes.

"AAUWRRGH! Priss, YOU go! Hicks, lend her your gun!" He moaned and turned to walk up the stairs.

"What?! Why me?!" Hicks protested and frowned. Rango stopped halfway up the stairs, turned around and leaned over the railing.

"Because I'M not dumb enough to leave my roadrunner alone with the meanest bird in the West! No one else either!" Rango snarled back, tired of all this fussing. He just wanted to find his real pants, for heavens sake!

"That's because YOUR 'runner is the meanest bird in the West..." Hicks mumbled as he reluctantly gave Priss his revolver. Priss accepted it and felt with once much more comfortable with the weight of a gun in her hands. " DON'T lose it!" He added and walked out again.

Priss stood there for a while with the glistening gun in her hand and just looked at it.

She could end this all... She looked up at the stairs and saw Rangos back disappear into one of the rooms.

But, didn't this mean that Rango trusted her now? Trusted her enough to give her a gun? She looked down on the gun again and felt guilt rising up in her throat.

She cursed and without further ado, she stuffed the gun in one of the empty holsters on her belt and walked out into the street, where the sun was already busy with warming up the ground after the nights cold.

"Ah, there ya are!" Bentley hollered as Priscilla walked out towards the livery stable. "Hicks told me you were coming instead! This'll be fun, won'nit?" He said cheerfully and climbed up in the saddle of a large scruffy looking dark brown roadrunner with an oversized crest on its head.

"Just as long as you won't be singin'!" She answered as she walked up to Birdie, the light brown roadrunner almost jumped up in the air when she spoke.

Bentley glanced at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I can't promise anythin'!"

At the same time, not too far away, the four men from Dry Creek were getting closer and closer to the town...

**Sorry guys, but I have to end it here xD! Didn't wanna write another mammoth-chapter ^^"... Gee, some of these last chappies have been kinda long, haven't they?**

**See ya guys next time, don't forget to write a review on your way out!~ :D**

**Delilah OUT!**


	21. Crystal Canyon

**Aaaand we're back again :D! My weekend's been crazy o_o... Why you might ask? Well, I'll tell ya why; Adelie and I went visiting our friend who lives by the westcoast; Niko. She's the weirdest, craziest and the most vulgar shemale with an addiction to animals and videogames and on top of all, she has an amazingly severe anger management issue... Thats all you need, and wants, to know (trust me o_o)... But apart from that she's a pretty fun person ^^, at least you're not bored when she's nearby; I thought Adelie was going to die from laughter every single day o.O... And I got to meet the horse of my dreams; the Frisian stallion Bäbyn (V)! And I almost forgot; she's got the weirdest rabbit ever; the Flemish Giant Benny o.O... Seriously, that guy is exactly like King Julian from Madagascar! Only in rabbit form! He lives in the freaking LIVING ROOM! And he eats WINEGUMS! And drinks SODA! He comes when she calls for him! He can friggin HIGH FIVE (when he wants to)! And has claimed the ENTIRE sofa as his throne (in which only his Niko is allowed to sit next to him)! ALL HAIL KING BENNY THE GREAT! LORD OF THE LIVING ROOM!**

…

**Meh it was an okay weekend ^^...**

**Nevermind, lets continue here now shall we xD?**

**Sorry for all the sillyness in the previous chapter, it was written during a math class on the morning -_-... Note to self: DON'T write ANYTHING when you're tired!**

***** Chapter Twentyone : Crystal Canyon *****

Priss did some final adjustments to the saddle before sitting up. Birdie had been locked up for several days so the outside world was now to him the scariest thing since tumbleweeds came into existence.

"Last one to find our buddies pays for a round at the saloon!" Bentley hollered as his roadrunner did a little prancing step to the side and dashed off.

Priss was soon on his tail, when a shadow above her moved. She slowed Birdie down and looked up A pair of black pants were nailed to the sign above the saloon and were leisurely flapping in the swift breeze. Priss stifled a laugh. So, that's where Rangos pants were...

She looked back at her hyena friend who slowly was disappearing off into the plains. A cocky chuckle escaped her lips as she bent forward and whispered to Birdie;

"Lets show 'em"

The bird squawked and fell into a gallop after the dark brown roadrunner. Behind the two racers, one could hear a scream, filled with frustration and anger;

"BEEEENTLEEEEEEYY!"

Bentley barked out a laugh. Too bad he couldn't be there to see Rangos expression when he discovered his real pants. But hey, that scream was reward enough!

And with that raging shout echoing over the plains, the two riders quickly began to disappear, until two mere dots in the distance proofed that they were still on the same planet.

Meanwhile, the four men from Dry Creek had stopped for a short break at the Crystal Canyon; a large divide, separating a small segment of the road the Giants build, from the rest of the desert.

"I don't get it, why are we here again?" A grumpy looking cockroach asked and crossed his four arms over his armored chest.

"Because there's something weird goin' on in Dirt, Thomas." Elton answered and sat down on the ground, resting his back against a boulder.

Tarrant nodded and continued; "I mean, why would sheriff Rango just head off like that on his own? Especially lookin' fer the Rattlesnakes? First of all, NOBODY with their mind in the right place would just go lookin' fer 'em serpent devils, especially not alone! Second; there was something weird 'bout that 'runner of his... She was a real beauty, but definitively not someone that Rango would ride." He rubbed the bandage that were still wrapped around his head and grimaced.

"No matter what we did, we would only get a beating from that bird! I mean, c'mon! She wanted her food WARM! What kind of bird eats nothin' but freshly roasted seeds?" Elton nodded and pointed to his eye that was still a bit swollen and had gained a greenish blue color. But at least he could see through it...

Thomas the cockroach cocked an invisible eyebrow. "But if sheriff Graham were so worried, why didn't he just ask the sheriff?"

"Because he refused to answer any questions asked regarding Dirt..." The third man, a fennec called Carl, replied. "Sheriff Graham told me he had a feeling in his gut that something was stirring in Dirt... And now, I think he might bee right, cause I too can feel it. Something is definitively happening!"

Thomas was still skeptical. "Meh, I think it's only another one of sheriff Rangos crazy ideas. You said it youself, Tarrant; anyone with their mind in the right place would never go after the snakes alone. But I'm not so sure that the good sheriffs mind IS in the right place!" He shrugged with two of his arms.

"Yeah, you might be right 'bout that, Thomas. But why didn't he at least bring Priscilla with him? I've heard he's having troubles just finding his back porch!" Carl asked and frowned.

Thomas sighed and turned around. "Maybe she tried to talk him out of it so he decided to let her out off the fun? I'll be right back, my bladder'll explode any second now unless I do somethin' 'bout it!" He said and walked away.

The twins looked at each other as their armored friend disappeared amongst the boulders of the quarry. "Bugs have bladders?" They exclaimed in unison.

"Howdy there, fellas!" An unfamiliar voice said. Everyone turned around, hands on their revolvers. Down the steep hill came a tall hyena on a large roadrunner. He wore a dusty, dark coat over a wrinkly and poorly tucked in used-to-be-white shirt, and with a worn floppy hat on his head. However, his most noticeable feature was the wide, almost a big goofy, grin that seemed to reach from ear to ear.

"Sorry for startlin' ya!" He said and stopped his runner. He leaned forward and looked at the three men in front of him. "Couldn't help but to hear your conversation! You fellas are headed to Dirt, huh?"

"Who're you?" Carl asked instead of answering the strangers question. He had seen this guy once before. But he just couldn't put his claw on where, and that made him feel uneasy...

The grin seemed to widen as the hyena tapped his hat. "The name's Bentley, just Bentley!"

Earlier...

The two riders had more or less given up racing and were now riding in a steady pace side by side. Behind them a coralsnake would pop her head above the sands surface every now and then to breathe before disappearing underground again. Priss got surprised when she noticed they were being followed by Coral. But apparently, she was just there to make sure that they stayed in the right tracks. And judging by the looks she gave Priss whenever her head resurfaced, she might have another purpose too.

"Hey, Bentley!" Priss said and turned to her companion. "Why on earth would you do that to Rango? And why his pants?" She couldn't help but to ask. That mornings prank didn't make any sense what-so-ever. But then again, there were few things that Bentley did that actually made sense...

"Just wanted to see what would happen, that's all" He answered gleefully.

"But they were on the saloons sign! How did you get them all the way up there?"

"Climbed~!"

Priss shook her head. 'No more questions,' she told herself. 'You'll only get more confused'... She looked around. They were close to a divide called Crystal Canyon. It was a steep crack in the ground where water had passed thousands of years ago and carved out a swindling path. There wasn't any water in it anymore, but when the first settlers had arrived, they called it the Crystal Canyon because of the beautiful, crystal clear water that passed through it. It used to be a popular stronghold for smugglers.

Suddenly, Priss heard something from far away. Her ears perked up from their place underneath her hat and she turned her head to the source of the sound. The sound of people talking came from the bottom of the canyon.

"I think I hear someone!" Priss said and dismounted the runner and walked up to the edge. She crouched behind a few conveniently placed loose rocks. It took some times to spot the four men sitting in a crescent half circle and talking. Priss' eyes widened when she recognized them.

"Great! Just perfect!" She muttered and hunkered down with her back to the rock and covered her eyes, as if the men down there could see her.

"Yeah, I know! They're all perfectly bundled up together!" Bentley had joined her and stood on all four, looking down on the trio.

"No! It's not that!" She whispered to him and pulled down her hats brim over her eyes.

Bentley tilted his head and looked at her. "Eh?"

Priss sighed. "I know those men... They're all from Dry Creek..." She said and slowly turned around to look at the men again. This seemed to catch Corals attention and she listened eagerly when Priss pointed to each an every one of them as she told them their names. "That fennecs name is Carl. Carl McKenzie. He's an old friend to the sheriff of Dry Creek, Louie Graham. Those twin 'possums over there are called Elton and Tarrant Anderson, they're deputies like me. And that guy is... Hmm, thats odd..." She interrupted herself and frowned.

Bentley looked back at the men and repeated himself; "Eh?"

"I swear I saw Thomas Roach down there a few moments ago." Priss said and looked for the bug, but he was nowhere to be seen.

"Yuck, I hate roaches..." Bentley said and did a disgusted grimace. "But, if you know these guys, why not just go down there and say hello?!" He added with a wide grin and stood up.

Priss followed and tried to stop him. "No, don't g...!" She panicked and tried to grab his coat, be he had already jumped up on the back of his roadrunner and headed down the steep path. "No! Bentley!" She almost shouted, but the hyena ignored her. Coral sighed, put her tail over her eyes and slowly shook her head. Priss had to bite her knuckles to not scream in frustration. "Bentley, you idiot!" She hissed through her clenched teeth and saw with pearls of panic running down her forehead how he announced his arrival and the three men jumped by his sudden voice.

"I can't watch this!" Priss winced to Coral and covered her eyes with her palms. No gunshot. No firing. No shouting. Yet. She slowly split her fingers to see between them. Bentley and the three men from Dry Creek were still talking, Carl looked annoyed though. She slowly breathed out a relieved sigh. So far so good.

**Have to end it here, sorry ^^! Hope you enjoyed, I have no idea how many chapters this will end up in xD! Perhaps, 30-40 somewhere... Definitively the longest story I've written so far xD! … But then again, I've only written two o.O...**

**Nevermind, next chapter will be up in a few days~ ^^! See ya 'til then!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	22. Snakes makes everything better! Right?

**And we're back again~! This time I haven't got much to say ^^"...**

**Meh, enjoy!**

***** Chapter Twentytwo : Snakes Makes Everything Better, Right? *****

Tarrant crooked an eyebrow and his brother repeated: "Bentley?"

The hyena, who introduced himself as Bentley, shifted in the saddle. "That's what I said!" He said, still with that annoyingly goofy grin on his lips.

Carl stroked his beard with a suspicious frown on his face. He KNEW he had heard about this guy before! Curse this old, broken memory! He feared he was getting old!

"So, why're you fellas on your way to Dirt? There can't be much to that place, can'nit? It's even got the most boring name ever!" Bentley tilted his head to one side.

"That's what we're trying to find out, our sheriff thinks there might be somethin' suspicious goin' on there! We met their sheriff Rango the other day and he..." Elton said, but was interrupted by his brother who shoved his elbow in his ribs. Elton winced in pain, rubbed his side and glared at his brother with a hurt expression in his black and white face.

"Wait, didn't you come from thataway?" Carl asked and pointed to the hill where Bentley just came down from. "Dirt lies in that direction, did you come from there?"

Bentleys eyes shifted. "Eh, yeah! As a matter of fact, we did!" He answered with a chuckle.

Carl cocked an eyebrow. "We?" He pointed out and looked at the roadrunner.

"Yeah, me an' my friend up there!" Bentley nodded and he too pointed up the hill. He could almost hear Priss' angry moan and facepalm combo. "She's a bit shy..." He explained and rolled his eyes.

Carl frowned and looked where the hyenas claw pointed. First, he thought that the man was joking with him, but then he actually saw movement up among the loose boulders. He quickly inhaled a deep breath and cupped his hands around his mouth; "HEY, YOU! WE KNOW YOU'RE UP THERE! COME DOWN HERE!" He shouted as loud as he could, making sure the person up there could hear him. The walls of the canyon shook slightly and loose rubble fell off the edges and bounced to the bottom.

Priss groaned as she helplessly stood up and fumbled for Birdies reins. She glanced at Coral, only to discover that the snake had slithered away and was probably hiding somewhere. She mumbled something degrading about snakes and stupid hyenas before climbing up in the saddle and steer down the same path as Bentley had gone before her. The gang from Dry Creek recognized her at once.

"Heavens t' Betsy! It's Priscilla!" Carl exclaimed as he could not believe his eyes. Priss tried to smile at them, but it turned out as an askew grin.

"Howdy!" She greeted with a swaying voice and nodded to the three men. Carl and the twins exchanged glances with each other. Wasn't Priss acting a little odd?

"You know this clown?" Tarrant asked and nodded to Bentley.

"Hehe, clown... Funny word!" The hyena snortled.

"Unfortunately, yes" Priss answered and chuckled nervously. "I heard you met Rango! How's he holdin' up?"

"Well, to be honest. He WAS acting kinda weird." Tarrant said pondering. Elton continued; "He was avoiding everything that concerned Dirt, there hasn't been an accident or something, have it?"

Priss nearly flinched, but managed to keep her charade up.

"You can say that again..." Bentley giggled, but shut up when Priss threw him a death glare.

"Absolutely not! Everything's just dandy, as usual!" She answered and tried to sound convincing. "But sheriff Rango wanted some time off for himself, so me and Bentley here has taken over the duty as temporary sheriff n' deputy!"

Suddenly Bentley started to cough. Painfully obvious fake coughing and she could hear him trying to mask "you suck at fibbing..." through them.

She snarled a warning to him, and it made him stop the coughing and grin at her again. "And one of our friends told us that he saw some weird lookin' men headed for town. We just went to see who you guys were, no offense. But we're kinda exposed now when Rango's out of town!" She added and kept looking at Bentley through the corner of her eye.

"Oh, we see!" Tarrant nodded, but Carl wasn't as convinced.

"Exposed? Really? A CHILD could get through..." Bentley was about to say something again, but this time Priss didn't let him finish. She startled Birdie by giving the unprepared bird a light kick in the sides so he jumped into Bentleys runner. Bentley wasn't prepared for the impact and nearly fell off his large bird with a guttural "guack!".

"I'm sorry my friend..." Priss whispered soothingly to the scared roadrunner. She faced the men from Dry Creek again with an excusing smile. "But now we see that its only you guys! Nice of you to care, but we're absolutely fine over in Dirt. You should just return home, and we'll do the same!" Priss chuckled and tried to push the outlaw aside by making Birdie walk into the larger roadrunner.

"Hey! That's not what we...!" Bentley got interrupted again by Priss;

"THATS! All there is to it, I think. See ya 'round!" She waved to the three men and turned away, eager to leave.

"Wait a minute! Before you two leave..." Carl said and stood up. Priss cursed and turned around. "I need to ask yer friend a few questions..." Priss felt like her stomach fell into a pit. Great. She thought. "Now, Bentley was it?" Carl said and tilted his face to the joker. "I've been thinkin'. I've seen you somewhere else..." He said and slowly moved his hand to his gun. Priss tensed up, but Bentley didn't budge.

"Really? Must've been another hyena. There are quite a lot of us 'round since..." Bentley said with a shrug. Again, he did not get to finish his sentence.

"Nope, I'm sure its you" Carl shook his head. "You are that lunatic, right? The weirdo hermit who lived in Rattle Pass?" That was more of a statement than a question.

Bentley shrugged. "Yeah, but that was a couple o' years ago!"

Priss raised an eyebrow to her friend. "Really? An hermit?" She asked curiously and turned to Carl. "What's so bad 'bout that?"

"That's not the issue here..." Carl shook his head again, with a serious frown on his face. "A few years ago, I lived in Rattleville, a little town at the foot of the mountains, right below Rattle Pass."

Priss crossed her arms. "What're you trying to say here?" She asked impatiently.

Carl looked at Bentley before answering; "Thing is, if it wasn't bad enough with the stories goin' on 'bout this kid, he was supposed to have joined the ranks of a bountyhunter. A criminal mastermind, claiming he's working for justice. But everyone who's met him says differently" Bentleys ears perked up. He seemed to like where this was going, contrary to Priss. Carl turned to her. "Him being here could only mean that the bountyhunter is here too. You're not telling us the truth are you, Priscilla?"

Priss opened her mouth to protest, but suddenly a blood curling scream echoed around the canyon instead.

The twins quickly got to their feet. "That was Thomas!" They both exclaimed in unison, right before something was sent flying and crashed right on top of Tarrant. Tarrant crawled away from the splayed body and both of the twins gasped when they saw who it was; Thomas Roach.

The cockroach was beaten badly, his shell cracked at several places and he was unconscious. Carl growled and whipped around. He stopped with his gun halfway out of its holster when he saw that Bentley already had brought up his revolver and was now aiming it at the fennec. Carl cursed and slowly took out his weapon to throw it on the ground.

"Smart!" Bentley said with a smirk when Carls gun landed among the rubble with a metallic 'clang'. But two more guns were quickly pulled out of the twins holsters instead and they were both aimed at Bentley.

"Bentley, put the gun down" Priss warned, but he didn't obey. He just switched his eyes to look at someone behind the twins.

"Ah, seems like you found our missing friend here!" He said to Coral, who was gloomily looming over the two opossums, eying them with her glistening, yellow eyes, her pupil not more than a thin slit. The twins hesitantly turned around to face the snake. All color seemed to drain from their faces as the snake hovered her face closer to their scared mugs and smirked. Elton was the first one to drop the gun. He knew better than to start messing with a snake. Tarrant glanced at his brother and trembled when he dropped his gun too. Carl didn't looked to pleased with the situation and turned his head to Priss.

"I'm sorry" She mimed as she brought out Hicks gun. But she never raised it, she only let her arm hang loosely along her side, eyes on the ground.

"Hey, it looks like you guys will be coming to Dirt with us, huh?" Bentley said, lowered his gun and turned his head to Priss. "Trust, it'll be best like this. You DON'T want Rango to get madder than he already is right now!" He laughed. Priss mumbled something incoherent. He tilted his head. "huh?"

"Keep your eyes on the guy you're threatenin'!" She angrily repeated, a bit louder this time, putting emphasis on every word.

Carl had tried to take the chance and dive after his gun, since the guy holding the revolver was dumb enough to turn his attention elsewhere and the snake was busy keeping her eyes on the three other men, even though one was unconscious. Bentleys head snapped around and lifted the gun towards Carl again.

"Hey! I didn't tell ya to move, did I?" He said and shook his head. He didn't sound annoyed or angry, it was just like he had shook his finger at a mischievous child instead of pointing a gun at a Texas Ranger.

Carl stopped and faced the hyena again with an annoyed expression. He was so close to his gun that his fingers were itching, but didn't want to risk his life; he didn't doubt for one second however this guy was going to shoot or not!

"So, if you're not gonna use that boomstick, how 'bout you lasso these buggers instead?" Bentley suggested to Priss while keeping his eyes on the old fennec.

Priss sighed. "Fine, gimme the ropes..." She said and dismounted Birdie.

"Eh? Don't you have 'em?" Bentley asked and resisted the urge to turn his head around.

She let her head fall to the side and frowned. "No, I thought you had 'em!" She sighed and shook her head.

This time he turned his head to Priss, smiled sheepishly and started laughing so hard he almost fell off his runner.

The Snakes...

Jolene slowly exited out from the run down saloon as the sun was rising. She shrugged in the morning light and rubbed her head against one of the pillars keeping the saloons balcony up. She shivered as she swore she could still feel the old skin dry up and slowly peel off. There was nothing she hated more than to shed skin. Everything would itch for days, even afterward! She shivered one last time and slithered away to the weathered livery stable, where her baby brothers loud snores made the walls shake. The livery stable was the only place big enough to house her brothers, except for the saloon, while she was lucky to be so small that she could fit into most of the other buildings.

She entered the dusty building and looked around in the gloominess for Blake. When she couldn't see him anywhere, she shouted loudly; "HEY!". She was rewarded by the sound of a drowsy Blake dashing his head up in surprise and hit the roof. She looked up at the hayloft and snickered. So that's where he was snoozing...

The newly awoken, sand red rattlesnakes head poked out from the loft. "Whadisit now, you highness?!" He groaned with a sleepy voice.

"Where's Jakey?" Jolene asked instead of answering his question. Blake did a shrugging movement.

"Hell, I dunno. Probably blowin' off some steam... Or someones head!" He said and tilted his head with a cocky smirk. "You were yelling at him almost all night, y'know! I thought he was goin' to go through the roof or somethin'!"

Jolene frowned. "Why did I do that?" She wondered, barely having any memories of the incident at all.

Blake shrugged again. "Beats me! I think it was somethin' 'bout the water being to warm... Or too cold!" He answered pondering.

Jolene rolled her eyes. Great, now she were going to have to apologize... She turned around to slither back out when she remembered another thing; "What did the sheriff want?" She asked her brother. She had vague memories of the sheriffs visit, too bad she wasn't in a 'listening mood' when he arrived.

"Sheriff Rango?" He shrugged for a third time. "I don't know, I don't care. He said somethin' 'bout his precious little dump of a town was in trouble. There's apparently some fella who keeps killing people and he sent Rango out to get us. Why the guy wouldn't go after us himself if he now is so desperate to find us beats me though..." He started rubbing his chin with his rattle. " I think it all sounds a little bit suspicious... I don't even think that Rango guy told his the other guys name! Besides, according to Rango, he has actually killed a kid and..." He interrupted himself and stared at his sister. "Uh-oh!"

"WHAAT?!" She screamed and raised her upper body to get closer to her brother. The broken old windows shivered in their rims. "AND YOU JUST SENT HIM BACK?! WITHOUT HELPIN' HIM OUT?!" She looked furious as she squinted her amber colored eyes and bared her white fangs. Blake backed off and nervously shifted his eyes.

"Hey! It's not like we could leave ya behind, right?" He answered. "Besides, keep your voice down, dammit! You're gonna make this building fall down on us if you yell like that!"

"Don't worry sis. If this building could handle Blakes snorin', then I think it can handle your voice too." A third snake appeared in the doorway and snickered.

"Jake!" Jolene exclaimed when her big brother appeared. "We HAVE to go to Dirt! We can't just leave Rango to take care of that guy all by himself!" She slithered up to the massive rattlesnake and stared him in the eyes. "Besides, I won't let anyone who hurts kids get away with it, and you know it!" She pouted and slammed her rattle in the ground to add emphasize.

Jake sighed and turned his eyes to Blake. "Did you really need to tell her that?" He said and shook his head.

"Sorry bro, it just sorta slipped out!" Blake answered and yawned. "If you two excuse me, I'm gonna go back to sleep now!" He said and disappeared. His older siblings heard him move around in the old, dusty hay before settling down with a content sigh.

"Jacob. Blake. I'm leaving for Dirt now! I don't care if you two joins me or not." Jolene said stubbornly and slithered past Jake, but she didn't get far until Jake put his steel rattle down in front of her, blocking her path. She turned to her brother and hissed.

Jake chuckled. "Sure, I'll let you go. But first you'll have to get one thing straight for ya; We're NOT coming after you. You'll have to go on your own. Blake is still wanted, and from what I've heard there's surprisingly many who's actually goin' after him, so he'll have to stay here for the time being. I would have come with you, but you know our brother is too stupid to stay put and would only get himself into trouble..."

"HEY! I heard that!" Blake protested and his head popped up again, this time with a tuft of hay stuck in his hat.

Jake ignored him and continued; "So I have to stay here and make sure that dumbass doesn't get himself captured or something."

Jolene snorted. "I thought I just said that I DIDN'T care if ya came after me or not, I'm still goin'! I'm gonna get that guy, then I'll come back. Promise-shake!" She said and lifted her rattle. Jake chuckled and crossed his rattle with her.

"Promise-shake..." He said and they both shook their rattles at the same time. The hollow, maracas-like sound from hers and the metallic rustling from his echoed through Skeleton Cliffs, setting a creepy mood over the morning.

"Well, I gotta get goin' now if I wanna catch up to him before he comes home!" Jolene said and withdrew her rattle and started her chase after the chameleon sheriff. Jake watched as she slowly disappeared over the horizon.

"Wa-wa-wa-wait! Did you just send her off? On her own?!" Blake said, climbing head first down from the hayloft.

Jake rolled his eyes. "She can handle herself, unlike some other snake I know..." He muttered, not taking his eyes off the horizon.

"Are ya sure it's a good idea?" Blake asked sceptically. Jake turned around and frowned.

"Why shouldn't it be?" He spat.

"Well, does she know where Dirt is, for a start? And second, she needed to ask for directions to find this place again." Blake sighed and shook his head. "Lets just face it, brother. Our sister has no sense of direction, what so ever!"

Jake went quiet, trying to come up with a good answer. But the best he could come up with was: "Bloody hell!", before he and his baby brother went after their sister.

**I dunno why, but I'm not sure I'm so happy with this chappie o.O... Personally, I think the last ones have been... sort of weird o.o...**

**…**

**Oh, and btw, I've got something quite exciting in store for all of you who likes the bountyhunter and his outlaw gang ;D! But I'm not saying what it is :Mwahaha!: ^'_'^**

**Anyway, see y'all next chapter ^^!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	23. Womenfolks

**I'm getting a rabbit :D! I'm going to buy one of the rabbits that Nikos family have bred; a female mixbreed of Flemish giant and French lop. I bet Benny is her father, because everyone in that litter is just freakin' ADORABLE 3! Now, we're trying to come up with a good way to get her from Borås to Stockholm, two towns who lies in each end of the country _... And to come up with a good name for her ^^**

**Anyway here's next chapter for you to read, enjoy~!**

***** Chapter Twentythree : Womenfolks *****

Sheriff Rango slept for much longer than he had planned, not waking up until the sun was settled high on the sky, leaving the chameleon in direct sunlight as the rock formation he was resting under lost its shadow. He heaved himself up to a sitting position and rubbed his dry eyes.

"Thirsty..." He whispered and fumbled for one of the bottles is Arrows saddlebag, when he realized has was just waving around in thin air. He turned around where Arrow had been sleeping during the night; gone. He quickly came to his feet and scanned the area. Arrow was nowhere to be seen.

He cupped his hands around his mouth; "AARRROOOW! Where are ya, featherbrain?!" He shouted and nervously gulped when he heard a faint "caw" in the distance. He could almost feel his face turn white. Vultures?! Oh no!

He almost tripped over his feet as he ran towards the source of the sound. He had to run almost halfway around the red stone slab to get to the ruckus.

To his relief, he saw that Arrow was unharmed. The big, black bird stood over a shapeless pile and tried to fend off the larger scavenger birds. Her head low and hissed with her crest on edge and wings extracted.

"Hey! Shoo, y'all! Get outta here! SHOO!" Rango ran to her assistance and frenetically waved his arms around. The vultures screeched in dismay, but the skipped to the side on their overdimensioned talons.

When Rango was sure that the large birds weren't going to bother them anymore, he turned to Arrow. "What's this, featherbrain?" He frowned and walked up the roadrunner standing with one foot at each side over a lifeless shape. "SPOONS?!" He immediately recognized the little rodent and sprinted the remaining distance. Arrow moved out of the way of the chameleon in a hurry and flapped her wings a few times before neatly folding them back into their place.

Rango knelt beside his unconscious friend. He was still alive, but heavily dehydrated, had probably been out here in the desert for days!

"Arrow, gimme some wa..." He said and looked up at the bird, only to see that she had the same idea as him and had already managed to get one of the waterbottles out of the saddlebag and was now using her beak to hand it to him. "...water... Thanks!" He said and snatched the round, metallic bottle from her. He removed the lid and slowly lifted it to Spoons lips. But instead of trying to force some of it into his mouth, Rango splashed some of it on his face. Spoons woke up in a choir of spitting, coughing and a colorful collection of curses.

"What'n tarnation...?" He mumbled and looked up at Rango. "That's you, sheriff?" He gladly accepted the bottle and drank the water in large, greedy gulps.

"Of course it is! What're you doing here? How's everything in Dirt? Is Beans okay?" Rango asked the multiple questions as he got the bottle back from Spoons. It was empty.

Spoons wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "Well, as ya might know, Ah went over to Beans' place. Y'know, to feed her animals. But when Ah came back, Ah discovered that Dirt had been taken over by them outlaws! Ah managed to stay hidd'n in the storage shed behind the saloon, there Ah could spy on 'em in the saloon. Ah saw when you came back, only to get sent back out into the desert..." Spoons made a pause and shook his head. "... Ah sure hope that little prick gets what he deserves someday... Anyway, Ah left Dirt a few days ago. It was mighty tricky to get out unseen, since that loafer in black had joined forces with Bad Bill, and keeps Bill busy watching the borders... Well, I managed to get out, but since..." Spoons seemed hesitant to continue the sentence.

"But since? Since what?" Rango pressed on, wanted to know what happened.

"You won't like this, sheriff..." Spoons sighed and his little, bearded face frowned at the sheriff. "But Ah don't think miss Priscilla are with us anymore..."

Rango felt like someone dropped a rock on his heart. "No! No, no! Don't tell me they've...?" He said with a voice that was close to breaking.

"No, no, no!" Spoons waved his hands and furiously shook his head. "Ah mean, she's not with US anymore! On our side!"

Rango cocked an eyebrow, not quite grasping what Spoons were getting at.

Spoons rolled his eyes. "Sheriff... Priscilla has joined forces with the outlaws!"

In Dirt...

Meanwhile in Dirt, the two headmasters in the collection of outlaws where casually sitting around a table on the balcony, while people carefully scurried about down on the ground.

Rango kicked back on the chair, hands behind his head and his face blankly staring toward the horizon. Proudly showing off his black pants, that he eventually got back. At the mere cost of some blood, sweat, tears and most of his dignity!

"Still lookin' for the sheriff and the snakes?" Hicks asked with a bored sigh. "I've told you; I doubt that guy EVER will find 'em! He didn't seem like the brightest star on the sky, as far as I'm concerned..."

"Well, he better 'ave found 'em soon! I'm really starting to miss my little pretty bird!" The lizard said with a grimace.

Hicks rolled his eyes and poured himself another glass of cactus juice. "That's your problem, Rang; you get attached to things! Too attached!" He said and drank about half of the short glass' contents.

Rango snorted cast an annoyed glance at his companion. "Well, I'm sorry not everyone are oblivious like you" He answered dryly and turned his gaze towards the horizon again. The sun was already up high on the sky, and the caused the air to quiver and tremble. Almost similar to water.

"Getting too attached to somethin' is never good, might cost you yer life, y'know"

"Hey, who do you think you're talkin' to, ya little brat? The reason I've made it this far in life is b'cause I trust the right people, and gets rid of the wrong! Besides, some bonds might save your life; I dunno how many times I've got Coral and Arrow to thank for my life"

"Speaking of trusting, are you sure it's wise to arm Priscilla and send her out alone with Bentley? I mean, I ain't got nothin' 'gainst the guy, but he sure can be quite a handful if he were to get really wired up!" Hicks emptied the rest of the amber colored liquid in one quick swig. "And if she's anything like her father, then it's just a matter of time before he ends up with a bullet between his eyes!"

Rango leaned back with a smug smile. "I wouldn't be so sure of that!"

"How come?" Hicks cocked an eyebrow before reaching for the prickled bottle again.

"Aw, come on! Don't tell me you haven't seen it?" Rango said in a shocked tone and turned his face to the larger coyote.

Hicks blinked in confusion. "Seen what?" He asked dumfounded.

His lizard friend groaned and slammed his palm on his forehead. "It's so OBVIOUS, Red!" He said and slowly shook his head as he let his hand fall down to the side again. "The look in Bentleys eyes whenever Priss' is 'round! The especially wide grin that appears whenever she says somethin'! Ya sure you haven't seen it!?" Hicks shook his head, which caused Rango to let out a strained chuckle. "Go ahead and call me crazy, but I think our little Bentley finally found his missing half!"

Hicks cocked another eyebrow in disbelief. "Are you saying that he is...?" He filled his glass with cactus juice for himself again, in lack of something else to do. "Are we even talkin' 'bout the same guy here?"

Rango shrugged. "Well, that's what I think at least. I don't think Priss's noticed it yet though, but I guess we'll just have to give 'em some time together. Besides, I've always wanted to play matchmaker!" He said, tried to sound serious, but couldn't help but to laugh at his friends look; Hicks eyebrows were furrowed, his eyes wide in disbelief and he had stopped paying attention to the cactus juice, who had since long overwhelmed the glass and the puddle underneath it kept trekking towards the ground.

"Now you're acting weird again, buddy" He mumbled and cursed when he remembered the liquor.

"Perhaps" Rango said and shrugged again. "Speaking of womenfolk, is there someone you gotten an eye for yet? Ya gotta admit, some of these Dirtonians are quite the eyecatchers!" He winked.

Hicks rolled his eyes again an moved his chair away from the puddle of cactus juice. "I'm not like you..." He said with an annoyed tone when he had settled on his new spot.

Rango grimaced. "Thank god for that..." He murmured before continuing to harass his friend: "But what 'bout that french gal? That vixen, Angelwhat's-her-face?"

"Angelique?"

"Exactly!"

"Why on Earth would I be interested in her? She keeps whining 'bout every little thing!" Hicks complained and threw his arms out.

"So do you! I reckon you two should git along just fine!" Rango said with a smug chuckle.

Hick shook his head and rolled his eyes once more as he took a swig of the cactus juice. He put it down on the table again. "How 'bout you then? You still thinkin' of her?" Hicks asked seriously and tilted his head.

"Miss Beans?" Rango laughed. "Nah, she really hates my sorry guts! But she's fun to tease 'round with though!" He chuckled as he shook his head from side to side. "What a pretty little thing, wonder how that spineless freak managed to get his claws on a pearl like that! Don't you, Red?"

"I wasn't talking about Beans..." Hicks pointed out, sounding as serious as before.

Rangos eyes darkened and he solemnly clenched his teeth. "Was it necessary to bring HER into the conversation?" He hissed trough his teeth and cast a menacing glare at his companion.

Hicks shrugged. "Just wonderin'. Do you?"

Rango turned his look to his boots. "No. It's been twenty years ago, it's called moving on!" He answered and stood up. "You've really ruined my mood right now!" He said and was about to leave when he stopped and squinted his eyes at something far away. The smile returned to his lips. "Well, well, well! Look at that! It seems like the two lovebirds are back, eh?" He pointed to the horizon. Hicks followed his finger and noticed the group of silhouettes getting closer and closer. "AND Bentley seems to be just fine too! You owe me 10 bucks, doggie!" Rango turned around to his friend and grinned wide.

"What for? We didn't bet! I'm never betting with you again, remember?" Hicks protested and got up. "Anyway, I want my gun back now. If that little freakshow wasted as much as ONE bullet I'll..." He was interrupted by Rango, who stifled a laughter and tapped him on the arm. The coyote turned his attention back to the little caravan. "What the hell...?" He said, trying to process what it was he saw while Rango fell into a laughing pile on his chair.

**Thanks for reading another chapter ^^! Maybe now I'll reveal what I have planned for a while:**

**A collection of short stories about the outlaws past :D! Telling more about their backstories and maybe the reason they became who they are now! I'll call them: The Outlaw Archives**

**Sounds like a good idea? I sure hope so ^^**

**I'll soon start with Rangos story, but I'm not publishing it until after a certain point in this story. Spoiler alerts, y'know ^^"...**

**Anyway, see ya next time :D!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	24. Another sundown

**Finally got my rabbit Loppan home ^^! She's so wonderful! Too bad Benny isn't her father, but her half brother :D! And thats still pretty epic :D! Pics on dA coming soon!**

**Here's next chappie, enjoy~!**

***** Chapter Twentyfour : Another Sundown... *****

Rango dried the tears of laughter from the corners of his eyes and shouted from the balcony, down to the group who just rode into town:

"Do I dare to ask what happened?!" He leaned over the railing, eagerly awaiting the response.

"Well..." Bentley started, only to get cut off by Priss;

"SOMEONE forgot the ropes so we had to improvise!"

Rango bit down hard on his knuckles to not burst out into more laughter. The four men Priss and Bentley managed to capture were sitting on their roadrunners in nothing but their underwear. Bound together by their clothes.

Bentley frowned and tilted his head to Priss. "Why do you always interrupt me?" He asked and pouted, his large ears folded backwards to his neck.

"Because each time you open your mouth, something stupid comes out!" Priss hissed back and moved on ahead with Birdie.

Bentley stopped, thought for a minute before before letting out a barking laugh. "That's true, I guess!"

"So, this was Bentleys idea?" Hicks asked Priss when she passed below the balcony.

"How did you guess?" She answered without looking up and headed for the stable.

**Back to the sheriff...**

Rango could do anything else but to stare at his short rodent friend. Why? Because he had just called Priscilla, his loyal deputy and trusted companion, a traitor. He, if anyone, should know better than to accuse her of treason!

"Maybe she didn't have a choice? Maybe they forced her join? Maybe they've tricked her? Maybe they..." He couldn't come up with any more maybes.

"I dunno sheriff. I honestly don't know! All I saw was her the next mornin' sittin' amon' the felons in the saloon. Sure, she looked misplaced and unhappy, but they treated her like one of them!" Spoons head drooped down. "I'm sorry sheriff. I really am!" He said and looked up at his sheriff again.

Rango shook his head. "I still think she must've had a reason for it!" He said sternly and turned to Arrow. She stood to their left, grooming her wings. As always! "I'm on my way back to Dirt. I'm taking the way past the Snakes Rattle and pay the Maxons a visit, see how they're holdin' up. I'm still the sheriff in this county, and I better go an' make sure that everyone else's doin' alright!" He said and climbed up in the saddle. "Are you coming with me?" Rango turned Arrow to Spoons an extended his hand towards his friend.

Spoons shook his head. "I'm on my way to Dry Creek... Unless you've been there and told 'em 'bout the situation?" He tilted his head. "Somethin' tells me you haven't?"

Rango looked down on the ground. "I've been there alright. But I never told sheriff Graham anythin' 'bout Dirt..." He answered and looked around in his saddlebags. He had two bottles of water left. He handed one of them to Spoons. "I don't care how tough you desert critters are, you won't make it to Dry Creek without water. Next time you pass out, someone might not be there to save you from the scavengers." He said, gave Spoons a quick nod and trotted away before the rodent could thank him.

Spoons knew Rango didn't see him, but he waved with the bottle in the air anyway. No matter what, he would always have full confidence in their sheriff. He had always come to save them in the nick of time, why would this case be any difference?

The aged rodent sighed and turned around and continued the slow walk through the treacherous desert to reach Dry Creek.

In Dirt...

That sundown, Priss sat by the lake of Dirt, jokingly known as Mud. She held an orange plastic fish tightly in her arms and stared blankfaced over the sparkling waters surface. She had met Coral here. The tricolored snake had just emerged from the water and gave Priss a short, affirmative nod before disappearing to sunbathe in whatever was left of the sunlight.

Coral seemed to be just as much of a nonspeaker as Sam. On second thought, had she heard Coral utter a single word since they met? No, but she had been speaking in morse to tell Rango 'bout the men from Dry Creek. Priss frowned and looked at the snake, rolled up into a bun and enjoyed with closed eyes and a calm expression the last rays that gently touched her scaly body.

Priss turned her eyes back to the lake and her grip on the fish hardened. She knew Mr Timms wasn't a real person, but she felt that the cold touch of the plastic toy was more comforting than the company anyone else could offer right now.

She had no idea where the men from Dry Creek was now. She saw them getting dragged away by some of Bad Bills crooks. When she asked Rango, he had only replied that it was better if she didn't knew.

Then she heard the gunshot from the town. Another innocent soul reaped by the bountyhunter from Hell. The little respect she had managed to build up for that outlaw was slowly crumbling away piece by piece every day. He himself had admitted that this was nothing but unnecessary murders. But in order to keep his reputation up, he didn't have any other choice but to keep up the killing. Priss closed her eyes. At least he had promised to keep the children out of it now, and had the two porcupine brothers to lead them and their mothers away from the scene. Maybe that scumbag had at least some decency left in him?

She hugged Mr Timms harder. "Rango... Please, come back!" She whispered to the plastic fish. She knew neither the fish nor Rango could hear her, but somehow it felt comforting to talk to Mr Timms...

While she was lost in thought, she didn't notice the man from town walk up to her. Not until he stood right by her.

"There ya are, Prissy!" Bentley said and sat down heavily next to her. Priss mumbled something in response. "Eh?" He tilted his head.

"Whaddya want?" She repeated louder and turned her eyes to the ground on her other side. Refusing to even look at the outlaw.

"Well, a large cup of coffee would be nice. Oh, you don't happen to have any pancakes on ya?" He replied and grinned widely in expectation of her answer. She just threw him an angry glance before looking away again. His ears drooped in disappointment. Then he saw the thing on her lap. "Who's your friend there?" He asked and nodded to Mr Timms.

Priss looked down at the orange fish. She wasn't sure how to answer that. "He's called Mr Timms... He's one of sheriff Rangos friends... I think?" She said eventually, knowing how weird it sounded.

"Like that palm tree there?" He pointed to the plastic palm tree that were placed further away. Priss nodded.

"Yeah, that's Victor" Priss said and couldn't help but to smile a faint smile. Bentley cocked an eyebrow in disbelief.

"Victor the palm tree?" He snortled while trying to stifle the laughter building up inside him. Priss raised both of her eyebrows at him and nodded. Bentley finally busted out laughing. "I think I like your sheriff! Victor the palm tree and Mr Timms the fish? That's genius!"

"I remember him being more like a funny lookin' weirdo than a genius when he first came to town." Priss chuckled. 'But he has so much changed since then...' She added in her mind. But soon, the weak smile vanished again from her face and she hung her head low. "Bentley..." She asked carefully.

"That's my name!" He replied and tilted his head again.

"Who did he shoot this time?" Priss finally said after a brief moment of hesitation.

He shrugged. "I dunno... The guy never said his name!" He scratched his ear. "But y'know, he looked like an average ringtailed cat... Except for a mean-lookin' scar on his cheek! Kinda makes me wish I had one!" He grinned.

"W-was he 'bout my age?" Priss was a bit afraid to ask that question, but she only knew one ringtailed cat with a scar on his right cheek.

Bentley nodded. "Yep! I think so..." He scratched his chin. From the corner of his eye he saw Priss slouch over Mr Timms and her shoulders were shaking slightly. "Prissy?"

"That was Richard. Richard DeGato. We used to be playmates when we were kids..." Priss said without looking up, trying to keep her muffled voice steady. "He got that scar when he fell down the stairs in the saloon... Tried to convince everyone he got it in a barfight..." Her voice threatened to crack so she stopped herself and leaned her head against the plastic fish.

Bentley nodded slowly. A bit disappointed after hearing the real story behind the scar. "Well, your friend sure had a lot of guts, I'm tellin' ya! Ya know what he said to Rango, right before the end?" This got Priss to look up at the outlaw next to her. He cleared his throat. "'That is the ugliest hat I've ever seen! When our sheriff comes, he'll take that hat and shove it up your...'" He said with a voice that wasn't a too shabby mimic of Richards real voice. Priss raised an eyebrow at him. "... Well, then he got shot. Too bad, I would've loved to hear the rest of it!" Bentleys wide grin returned.

Priss also managed to keep a weak smile in the corner of her mouth for a couple of seconds before she closed her eyes shut and turned away. Tears burning behind her eyelids. But she wouldn't allow herself to cry. Not here and not now...

She almost jumped in surprise when she felt Bentley drape his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. Strangely, she didn't resist.

"Hey, whats up with the frown?" Bentley asked and tilted his head. "I don't like that frown. It doesn't suit you!"

"I'm sorry, but it's hard to be happy when people you care about gets murdered by your boss, and there's nothing you can do to stop him!" Priss spat and turned her face to him again, only to discover that he was closer than she first though and pulled away.

"Soo, it's better to just sit here and feel sorry for yourself then?"

"No... But..."

"Then why on Earth are you always so gloom?! Seriously, watching you bein' all sad makes me sad, and I HATE bein' sad! It's worse than havin' a fly buzzin' 'round in your room at night!"

"Ugh! J-just go away"

"Are you sure you want me to leave?" He said with a lopsided grin.

Priss glared at him. "Yes! That's just what I said, wasn't it?" She answered impatiently.

Bentley withdrew his hand and scratched his neck. "Well, I was just thinkin'... Since I owe ya a drink n'all..." He turned his head to face the lake, but kept looking at Priss from the corner of his eye with a tricky smile.

Priss wiped her eyes and chuckled. Well, better make the best of the situation and perhaps eventually he would leave her alone... "Actually, a drink would sit just fine right now..."

**For everyone who's getting frustrated by the lack of rattlesnakes; don't worry ;)! There will be a LOT more action with the scaly trio in either the next chapter or in the chapter after that ^^!**

**Anyway, next chapter will be up pretty soon ^^! In a few days or so~!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	25. Back at the Maxons

**Ain't got much to say ^^... I've got a title for Rangos story in the Outlaw Archives: Rise of the Hunter :3. I hope to be able to post it soon ^w^!**

**Meh, here's next chapter, don't forget to write a review when you're done ;)**

***** Chapter Twentyfive : Back At The Maxons *****

One drink suddenly turned into many. Priscilla wasn't much of a drinker, usually she just had one glass, two if it was a busy night. But this time, she lost track of the count around 10. To feel the strong, amber colored liquid burn its way down her throat was a great stress reliever, she noticed.

Anyhow, it didn't took long before she was laughing with the rest of the crew, temporarily forgot about the situation in Dirt.

Rango persuaded Hicks to play something on the old, dusty piano that stood against one of the racking walls. Hicks refused at first, but after enough nagging from his companion, he finally got up from the bar chair he sat on and placed himself in front of the piano. The first accords he took sounded horrid. A mess of plinging and plonking until it somehow started to sound like music. The Camptown Races, to be precise.

"I didn't know Hicks could play!" Priss giggled and shook her head.

Rango shrugged. "Me neither! Found out last year that his mother was a real wench when it came to teaching snobby etiquette-stuff like piano-playing. SEEMS LIKE THE LESSONS SHE BASHED INTO YOUR THICK SKULL FINALLY COMES IN HANDY, EH?!" The last part he shouted to the coyote, who responded with a simple 'shut up!' before continuing his playing.

"Don't stop, Hicky! I love this song!" Bentley laughed and took a big swig out of the bottle of cactus juice he held in his hand before slamming it on the bar desk. He turned to Priss. "Dance?" He asked and held out his hand.

Priss immediately put both of her hands up in defence. "No! Nononono NO!" She said and furiously shook her head. "I CAN'T dance! Especially not now! I can hardly walk straight!"

"So what? Me neither!" He laughed and jumped up from his chair and did a little comical jig. Priss laughed but kept shaking her head. "Naw, don't be borin' now, Prissy! _Wanna run all niiiight! Wanna run all daaay~!_" He started to sing along while flailing around. "_Bet my money on a bobtailed nag, somebody bet on the bay~!_"

"Hey Toadface!" Rango turned to Buford. "I told you, NO coffee to the foreigner!" He jokingly laughed, Buford didn't seem to be as amused.

Fledge found a banjo the moriachi owls left behind and joined in on the music. Or at least, he tried to. Music was, like his English, not his strongest side. But nobody seemed to mind.

Suddenly someone grabbed Priss' shoulders and threw her out on the floor. As soon as she regained her balance, she snapped around and gave Rango an angry look.

"We told ya not to be so borin'!" He said in his defence.

Priss quietly growled and was about to throw herself over the lizard when someone else grabbed her hand and spun her around. She came face to face with Bentley.

"Changed your mind?" He teased with a smug smile.

"Not exactly... HEY!" She was anything but prepared when Bentley grabbed her other hand and started jumping around in his improvised dance again. "Let me go!" She said, trying to sound serious by putting emphasis on each word, but the giggle that escaped her lips gave her away.

Rango turned to the only one who didn't enjoy himself this night, except for Buford. "C'mon now Sam! Cheer up! If the deputy can, so can you!" He said and gave the young bobcat an encouraging punch on the shoulder.

Sam looked up from his glass and looked at Rango with the same, stern facial expression that he always had. "I'll cheer up when the one responsible for Isabelles death lies six feet down in the ground..." He snarled and returned to his cactus juice.

Rango grumpily snortled. "Be that way then, sourpuss..." He grunted, took off his hat and put it on the counter and left the bar to join in with the others.

Priss couldn't help but to laugh at Bentley, who clearly had no bloody idea how to dance and was randomly flailing about with Priss in his hands. Suddenly, Bentley tripped on a chair behind him and staggered to keep his balance. Priss however, kept going forward. Resulting in their foreheads slamming into each other.

Priss backed away while stars danced in front of her eyes, but she didn't lose her footing. Her forehead throbbed with pain and when she finally got her vision back to normal, she saw Bentley lying spread-eagle on the floor. Knocked out cold.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and the music died out. Suddenly they all busted out in a roaring laughter that made the walls creak and the worn windows to shake.

"Damnit, woman!" Rango said, trying to sound stern but the laughter hiding in his face spoiled his charade. "I would very much APPRECIATE it if ya stopped knockin' my men unconscious!"

Priss laughed as she felt her face slowly turning red. "Hehe, sorry 'bout that!"

Buford sighed and rolled his eyes as he stretched out and got one of the prickled bottles of cactus juice. Normally, he wouldn't do this except it was an emergency. But in his eyes, this did qualified as a god darn emergency. He lifted the bottle to his lips and emptied it in three deep swigs. He would definitively need this stuff himself if the night continued like this for any longer!

**Back to the sheriff...**

Rango reached the Maxons farm just as the night came creeping and the sun disappeared behind the horizon. The young gerbil couple welcomed the sheriff as he got off the black roadrunner.

Arrow, to her dismay, was taken to a corral along with the farms two dirt-colored runners. As Rango took off her bridle and saddle, she gave the lizard a death glare.

"Well, what do you suggest then? That you come into the house with us?" Rango said sarcastically. Arrow however, liked that idea and wouldn't settle for anything else. And she thought looks on the Maxons faces when Rango followed into their home with his runner trailing behind him, was priceless!

A soon as they settled around the table, Marianne brought the men some coffee and the Maxons told the sheriff about the time after Bad Bills arrest.

"It's so much calmer 'round here, me and Mary have FINALLY gotten our crops t' grow!" Jason proclaimed proudly. "The story behind the Snakes Rattle and that Clint fellow really got me hooked! I decided to delve deeper in the story and guess what I found out?" Jason got an excited glint in his eyes and leaned forward over the table. "There's rumors sayin' that he had a mate! Apparently, every now and then, he would go to a town called Skeleton Cliffs, and sometimes he was seen with a gorgeous female! A diamondback that all creatures in the west swooned over! I wonder what she looked like..." Jason added pondering, and got an angry look from his spouse. He chuckled and shook his head. "Too bad there's no name, hell there ain't even proof that this rumor was true!" He looked up and nodded to Arrow, who had made herself comfortable on the rug in front of the fireplace and slept with her head partially under the wing. "That's an impressive creature you've got there! What happened to your old one?"

Rango shrugged. "He hurt himself on the way home. Had to borrow this little diva from a friend." He said and looked back at the sleeping roadrunner.

Jason blinked in confused. "Diva?"

"Yeah, I'm tellin' ya buddy, this little princess won't leave in the morning until she's made sure her feathers are glistening more than the sun!" He cast a glance back to Jason as he talked, then he turned his eyes to Arrow again. "But then again, I've never met a braver or smarter bird in my life" The sheriff pondered as he turned his attention back to Jason.

"Your friend sure has great taste when it comes to roadrunners then?"

"I hate to admit it, but yes"

Meanwhile, Arrow kept faking her sleep and enjoyed the compliments.

"By the way, sheriff Rango" Jason said after a few hours of small talk. The night was pitch black and frost had built up on the windows. Jason stood up from his chair and stood behind his spouse, placing a hand on her shoulder. Marianne smiled to her husband and gently placed her little hand over his. If Rango had any ears, they would perk up in curiosity. "Y'see sheriff... We just found out that, well, we're expecting a child!" Jason proudly announced and the two to-be-parents affectionately rubbed their cheeks against each other.

Rango couldn't help the wide grin that split his face. "Congratulations y'two!" He cheered and threw his arms out.

"Thank you..." Marianne said, and her husband continued: "There's only one small problem..." Rango tilted his head and asked about the reason for their concern. "Well, y'see, we're both suckers when it comes to names..." Jason said and Rango heaved a relieved sigh. Relieved that it wasn't anything more serious... "So we were just 'bout to ask you? What do you think would be a nice name?"

Rango thought for a minute. Then he said with a smile: "Well there's this one name that I was going to save if me n' Beans ever had any youngs of our own..." Suddenly he saw something moving outside the window. Something long and lightly sand-colored. "What the...?" He said and frowned. He got up from his chair, his hand racing towards his belt, realized that he didn't have a gun and cursed.

"What's wrong, sheriff?" Jason asked with a worried look. Rango hissed at him to be quiet and slowly opened the door, peeking out of the crack.

Suddenly they heard the screech of a terrified javelin, and seconds later Rango saw the hog-like creature soar through the sky and land safely in a carriage filled with hay. Further away, he heard a hysterical, maniacal laughter that somehow sounded familiar.

"Did ya see that, sis?! Haha! That was hilarious!"

"No! It wasn't! That poor creature! Do you necessarily have to terrorize every living being you meet?"

"As long as it's fun!"

"You're despicable sometimes, y'know that?!"

"Sticks n' stones, sis..."

"SHUT IT you two! I'm already in a bad mood! You don't want me to shoot someone now, do ya?!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

Rango gulped as the three voices came closer to the house and three pair of eyes gleamed with the stars. Two bloodred pairs with yellow streaks around the pupil, and one amber-colored pair.

"It's them?!" Rango whispered, filled with mixed emotions. One side of him was hopeful, maybe they came searching for him and tell him they've changed their minds? The other side was terrified. Those three weren't exactly known for being the type of people that changed their minds to help people in need. So what did they really want?

"Who?" Jason whispered back, reaching for the shotgun above the fireplace.

Rango turned around and signed for him to leave the shotgun on the wall. "The Rattlesnakes!"

**TOLD YOU they were gonna come soon :P! This is when the REAL action happens :D!... Or at least, it will soon xD**

**See y'all next chapter ^^! Won't be too long until then, I hope ^^"**

**Delilah OUT!**


	26. Change of hearts

**StonecoldAphrodite: Oh yeah, thats right :D! Haha, thanks xD! Had totally forgotten how they were spelled, hehe... Gotta put that on my list on things to correct xD! My veeery long list...**

**Anyway, here's the next chappie, haven't got much to say for now ^^  
**

***** Chapter Twentysix : Change Of Hearts *****

Arrow stood up now, with her head held high and looked out through the door crack just above Rangos head.

"The Rattlesnakes?" Jason frowned. "The only rattlesnake I know of in this place is the Grim Reaper, but he isn't supposed to be 'round here now, is here?" He asked with a shaking voice.

"Well, he's here now alright. And his two siblings, the Dracula of the West and Fast-shooter-Jolene." Rango said and opened the door with a loud creak.

"Look! Now you woke the farmers up! Just get the animals back in the corral so we can leave before anyone gets hurt, 'kay?!" Jolene shouted to Blake, who tried to herd the terrified livestock he set loose, back in their right places again. He looked very disgraceful, and Jake laughing like a maniac at his brothers attempts didn't improve the picture.

"Shut up!" He hissed at both of his older siblings and dove after one of the roadrunners, but missed it. "Besides, why'm I the one who has to do this?! A lil' help would be appreciated!"

"Because it was you who suddenly took a turn into this farm and decided to have a little fun!" Jake answered and turned his head to the house. "Someone's comin' this way, just so you know..." He readied his gatling gun.

Rango waved with his arms. "Hey! It's me! Don't shoot!" He squeaked when he heard the clicking and twirling of Jakes gun.

"Hey! It's the sheriff! Ain't it?!" Blake grinned and wrapped his tail around one of the roadrunners, who tried to take advantage of the distraction and sneak away from the large, terrifying snake that chased him around. The bird squawked in fear and flapped his wings and rammed its sharp beak in between two of Blakes scales. "AAYEEE! Sonnova bitch! Ya want me t' EAT ya, ya stupid chicken?!" He hissed and turned around to give the roadrunner a bite, but he was stopped by a slap on the snout by his sisters rattle.

"Forget it, buster!" She said and turned to the chameleon. She smiled and quicker than a flash, she had wrapped herself around the little lizard and gave him a squeezing hug. "Hi again there, lil' friend!" She cooed. "I'm so sorry fer my behavior the other day! Wasn't quite myself!"

Rango managed to crawl out of the snakes tight grip before his bones got crushed. "It's alright" He coughed and tried to catch his breath as his face colored returned from blueish purple to green. "But, what are you three doing here?" He asked as soon as he regained his ability to breathe normally.

"Well, I don't think my brothers care that much, but I heard the cruel things this man has done to your town. Is it really true that he killed a child?" Jolene asked with a frown and lowered her head to the same level as the lizard. Rango took a few steps back and nodded. Jolenes amber colored eyes flashed. She faced her brothers again. "And you still refuse to help? Tsk, tsk,tsk..." She disbelievingly shook her head.

"It's not our problem, it never was and shouldn't be. Were taking you to Dirt ONLY because you would get lost in your own nest." Jake snorted and cocked his head. "And YOU are still too stubborn to just leave people to their own business, tsk, tsk tsk..."

"A-are you really going to help us?" Rango couldn't believe his ears. "But you said that..."

Blake interrupted and finished the sentence: "That we would come with you when pigs fly. And I've gotta say..." He snickered and pointed to the, still fazed, javelin who had soared through the night sky only a few moments ago. "That pig flew mighty fine!" He bursted out laughing at his own joke. His older siblings simultaneously rolled their eyes.

"Sheriff Rango!" Rango turned around when he heard Jason call his name. The gerbil took a cautious step outside the door, unarmed. He had been wise and listened to Rango, since he left the shotgun inside.

"It's okay! They're not dangerous! At least not for the moment!" Rango added the last part in a more whispering tone, although Jason heard him and nervously swallowed.

Despite the fear in seeing the three, much larger, killer snakes he walked out and stood next to Rango. Mumbling something really disrespectful when he saw the mess the youngest reptile had caused to his beloved farm.

"Jason, this is Blake, Jolene and Jake. Rattlesnakes, this'ere is Jason Maxon..." Rangos eyes shifted and leaned forward to the snakes. "Please, he's gonna be a father. Try to not give him a heartattack or somethin'!"

Jolene and Blake laughed, while the bored out Jakes rattle shook slightly. "Just don't get more children than that. Your kid will eventually thank you!" He mumbled and gave his younger siblings an accusing glare. They glared back at him.

"So, what you are saying is that at least one of you will come?" Rango said hopefully, interrupting the awkward mood between the three snakes.

Jolene nodded, but Jake turned his face away and mumbled something.

"W-what is going on, sheriff?" Jason asked, uncertain of the level of danger his family was in.

Rango sighed and looked down on the ground. He really didn't want to tell anyone, he didn't want this to get more attention in case the other Rango would see that as a reason to hurt the people of Dirt even more. "Well, eh, y'see, we're in this tortuous situation over at the ol' town, and there's this fellow who really wants to talk to the Rattlers over here..." He wasn't sure how to explain it without giving too much away. If he told Jason up front about the state of Dirt, he would surely do something, sending a telegram or whatever, to tell the nearest marshal and WHAM! Dirt risks getting into more trouble! "Honest to say, I'm a bit surprised to see you three here! I mean, neither of ya didn't seem too eager to help out" He turned to the snakes.

"I'm still not 'helping out'" Jake spat. "I'm goin' back. Jo, if you want t'go and help the town, go knock yourself out! Blake, it would be such a pain if you went back t' jail, but if I have to spend another day with any of you I'll go batshit crazy!" He turned around to slither back to Skeleton Cliffs. "You better go with Jo. The sheriff knows the way to the town, y'don't need me to babysit anymore!" And with those final words, he put his large body in motion and set his course back to his dead hometown.

Blake and Jolene both extended their dark tongues at their brothers back before facing the sheriff again.

"You never told us who this guy is, anyway!" Blake cocked an invisible eyebrow.

"Uh, yeah... 'Bout that..." Rango said with a nervous chuckle. "Y'see, the reason he hates me and lets my town suffer for it, well... He claims that his name is Rango... And those stories I told, that I lied 'bout back in the days, heck they're his stories... And... Huh? Jolene? Blake?" He interrupted himself and frowned. The two snakes in front of him stared with their mouths gaping and he could've sworn that they had lost some of the color in their face. Within seconds, the third snake had lunged forward and wrapped himself around the shocked chameleon. Jake squeezed him really tight and brought him closer to his face.

"Don't lie to us, you little shit!" He hissed and bared his fangs.

Rango could feel the air getting pressed out of his lungs as he struggled for air. Damn he really hates this! Jason backed a few steps before turning around entirely to go back inside and fetch his shotgun.

"No... I... didn't... lie...!" He wheezed as dark dots started to dance in front of his eyes.

Jolene tapped her brother on his coils with her rattle. Jake snapped his neck around and hissed at the one who disturbed him.

"I don't think he's lyin', bro!" Blake said and tilted his head. "It makes too much sense!"

"Sense? Since when has anythin' made sense to you?!"

"He's actually right, Jake. For once..." Jolene shook her head and looked with a concerned frown at the chameleon who quickly turned blue in her brothers grip. Jake got the hint and unfolded, dropping the sheriff on the ground.

"He knew how Jolene would react if someone were to kill a kid! Jo has always loved children, and she would without a the hint of a doubt want to punish the one who did it!" Blake said 'as-a-matter-of-factly'. "Her being the spoiled little girl that she really is, no offense sis!" He hurried to add when Jolene gave him the death stare. "She would nag at us until we all did her bidding and came to aid her in kicking the child-murdering bastards ass"

Jake mumbled something when he realized that his brother was right. "He's always been a sly one, hasn't he?" He chuckled and locked his eyes on the ground.

"Y-you know... him?" Rango coughed and looked up at the snakes, still trying to regain his breathing. If the snakes continued to do this to him, he would end up with all of his ribs broken!

The three snakes were quiet for a while. "Yeah, we know Rang-rang alright..." Blake eventually said and jerked his head. "How did he... well y'know. How did he seem to you?"

Rango grimaced. "Want me to give an honest opinion? Evil, cocky, condescending, excessive, superior, bully, uncaring, cruel, proud, selfish..." He rattled of a whole list until Jolene had enough and silenced him with a wave of her tail.

"He hasn't always been like that" She said and drooped with her head. "As a matter of fact, him and Jake used to be best friends!" She glanced at Jake from the corner of her eyes.

Jake snorted. "Shut yer mouth, Jo!" He hissed and his rattle shook slightly. He turned to the surprised Rango. "Yeah, I knew him. But he's a bloody, self-indulgent bastard. Has always been, will always be!"

"Look who's lying now!" Blake hissed and slithered up to his brother. "I don't remember much from back then, but what I do remember is that you two were like brothers! It was always you two, together with that other, bitchy girl-thingie, what was her name again'?" He asked Jolene without breaking eyecontact with his brother.

"You mean Clara?"

"That's right, Clara! You three would always do stuff together!"

Jake hovered over Blake and the two pair of blazing eyes met. "Shut up, brat!" He hissed and bared his long fangs. "That was a long time ago! Not even worth to bring up!"

Jolene glanced over at Rango. "His full name is Durango Campbell, but he took the name Rango when he left to become a rogue bountyhunter. I recall him as a really funny and kind guy, who everyone saw as a prodigy in law enforcement." She let out a sad chuckle. "To think that one little incident would change him so much... From being a deputy, and soon to receive the sheriffs badge, to a lowlife outlaw..."

"What happened?" Rango inclined after Jolene got silent.

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" Blake turned his head. "Y'know what! Since your little parasite there turns out to be an ol' friend of ours, then we'll all come and try n' talk some sense into him!" Blake said, awfully cheerful. "Isn't that right, Jacob?" He smirked at his brother, who mumbled something incoherent and looked down at the ground. Apparently, he agreed.

"Great!" Jolene said and gave Blake a quick nudge on his cheek. "You think your friend'll let us sleep in the barn fer the night?" She nodded to Jason, who stood a few paces away with the shotgun in his hand. Clearly confused about what to do.

Rango nodded. "I'll ask him..." Was the answer.

Jolene nodded again and turned to Blake. "And you've still got critters to herd, you bum!" She said with a gleeful laugh, which caused her little brother to let out an upset moan in response.

**That's it for t'day folks xD! Great! Now I can finally upload Rangos story, now when I've got THAT part out of the way :D!**

**Not sure when I'll get time to do that, though... But hopefully that'll be soon ^^! I've got a shitload of homework to do -.-... I hate homework...  
**

**See y'all next time!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	27. Nightmares

**And yet another chapter :3!**

**Starting to feel a bit sick actually :/... Really DON'T wanna catch another sickness right now D:! I still haven't gotten over the fact that I had a fever this summer ;_;...**

**Oh, and I uploaded the first chapter of Rise of the Hunter last week, in case anyone missed it ^^**

***** Chapter Twentyseven : Nightmares *****

"_Really? You don't have a name?" _

"_Yes I do!"_

"_Then spill it!"_

"_My name's...! It's... I... I can't remember..."_

"_You can't remember? How can you not remember your own name?"_

"_I... I don't know..."_

"_Well, we can't have it like that now can we? Hmm... You kinda look like my old teacher... Except that he wasn't one of you guys, in fact he was a just a common dog... I know! His name was Mr Bentler, so until you remember your old name, I'll just call you Bentley from now on!"_

"_What? But I...!"_

"_No buts, buddy! Eh? Oh crap, I've gotta go! Daddy will be FURIOUS if he ever found out that I've talked to you! He keeps telling me that your sort is dangerous and would take every chance that they can to harm me. But I don't think you seem that dangerous at all! In fact, I think I like you! But you can't tell anyone we've met!"_

"_Huh? Why not?"_

"_Why not? Why do you think, blockhead? I'll be in sooo much trouble if this comes out! Anyway, we meet up here again, same time tomorrow, 'kay?!"_

"_What? Why...?"_

"_Stop questioning me! Aww shit, that was him again! I really have to go! See ya tomorrow, Bentley!"_

"_W-wait...! Urgh! Alright... I-I guess... See ya t'morrow, Cornelia!"_

"Hey, buddy! Wake up already!"

_Huh? Who said that? Corny?! Wait a sec, since when did Corny have humungous, yellow eyes?_

Bentley jolted awake and nearly collided with Priscilla again. "THESUMOFTHEAREASOFTHETWOSQUA RESONTHELEGSEQUALSTHEAREAOFT HESQUAREONTHEHYPOTENUSE!"

Rango laughed in surprise. "Well, he woke up alright..." He said. "That's gotta be somethin' new! Interestin'..".

Priss flinched. "Woah... Are you okay?" She slurred after nearly avoiding slamming the two heads together again.

Bentley didn't say anything and looked around with a disoriented look on his face. He was in his room. Rango and Priss were both standing next to his bed, both had their arms crossed over their chests.

"Wh-what...?" He asked and rubbed his aching head.

"Long story short: y'were knock'd out and wouldn't wake up so Hicks and I had to carry y'all the way up here!" Rango said and the corner of his mouth was tugged upward in a lopsided grin. "Y'were out like a log, buddy!"

"My head hurts!"

"Yeah, and I'm sorry 'bout that..." Priss said with a nervous chuckle.

Bentley frowned. "Why did you do that?" He asked and tilted his head.

"Hey! You tripped me!"

"I did?"

"Yeah! First you tripped on somethin', 'think it was a chair, then you made ME fall on YOU and hit ya in the head!"

"Oh... Then I guess I'm the one who should be sorry then!"

"No! I mean, it was me who knocked ya out cold, y'know! I'm sorry!"

"Well yeah? But I'm sorrier than you! I'm the sorriest of them all!"

"... Really?"

"... Sort of..."

All three of them went into an awkward silence. Rango looked from Priss to Bentley and then back again, before smiling smugly and slowly backed out from the room. "I'll just go n' get Hicks and head back down to the saloon..." He opened the door and carefully stepped out. "I think the guys wonder what the heck we're doin' up here!" He added and closed the door.

Hicks were leaning on the wall and shook his head at his companion. "I still think you're just imagining things..." He said and got a sly grin from Rango.

"I'm not! You'll see soon 'nuff!"

Priss restlessly looked around the room while Bentley moved to sit on the edge of the bed. The thing that surprised her was that while she had expected Bentleys room to be a big mess, she found that his room actually was even tidier than hers! Who would've thought that someone like him would be so finicky?

She turned around to comment on the lack of messiness but when she forgot what she was about to say when she saw that Bentley sat uncharacteristicly quiet with his head leaning on one of his palms, having a staring contest with the wall.

She frowned and went to sit down next to him. But when she did, he tensed up for a second and recoiled slightly, but relaxed when he saw who it was. Priss' frown was exchanged with a worried grimace. Something was wrong. Very wrong!

"What's the matter?" She asked and gently put a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't you think that stain over there looks like a bunny?" He answered immediately and kept his gaze locked on the wall.

She followed his eyes and saw the stain and laughed. He was right. "No, but seriously..." She said and raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

Bentley finally turned around and looked at her, puzzled. "Somethin's wrong?"

"Why else would you be so... gloom?"

Bentley looked away again and a faint smile played on his lips. "It's nothin', really!" He said in an attempt to sound reassuring. Priss raised both of her brows. She wasn't convinced. He squirmed and looked down on the floor. This was getting uncomfortable.

"What is it you're not tellin' me?" Priss moved to in front of him, blocking his view of the wall. She bent forward, seeking eyecontact that he did everything to avoid. He leaned back and glanced to the sides.

"I've told ya, it's nothin'!" He winced. But the more he was avoiding her question, the more she became convinced that there was something troubling her friend.

"Bentley!" She said softly. "What's wrong?" She repeated herself. "You can tell me! I'm your friend, ain't I?" He cautiously glanced up at her and mumbled something. "Huh?" She tilted her head.

"Nightmares..." He whispered and looked down at the floor again.

Priss smiled and stood up again. "Hey, it's okay to have nightmares! Everyone has 'em! But the good thing 'bout 'em are that they're not real!" She said and tried to sound cheerful, but Bentleys expression didn't change.

"Mine are..." He said with a low voice, close to whispering.

Priss sat down next to him again. "Wanna tell me 'bout 'em?" She found herself asking. What? Since when did she turn into a shrink?

Bentley shook his head. "I'd rather not..." He said. It was bad enough that he had to relieve them every night. Talking about them in front of her didn't sound tempting...

Priss sighed and shook her head. Was there more she could do now? 'Well, at least I tried...' She thought to herself and stood up again. She was about to leave when she felt someone grab her by the elbow. She snapped around and frowned.

Bentleys ears drooped as he eased the grip he had around her wrist. "Sorry..." He said, which made Priss blink in confusion. "Don't leave..."

She flinched. Did he just blush? She sat down next to him again and her confusion reached new heights when he gently took her hands in his. "Why?" She asked sceptically.

"I-I don't know..." He answered stuttering.

Priss shook her head. "You're acting strange, Bentley. Even stranger than usual!" She said with a restrained sigh.

Bentley snickered. "I know..." He said and slightly turned his head to look at her again. "I... Well, I was just... I..." It seemed like he was trying to tell her something.

Priss cocked her head at him. "Admit it, you're trying to pull another prank here? Is that's what's goin' on?" Bentley frowned and quickly shook his head from one side to another. "Then what in tarnation's goin' on?" She was getting impatient. She was far too tired and drank far too much earlier for this!

"I dunno... I... I guess I'm..." He started to say, but soon gave up with an annoyed sigh. "Aww, to hell with it!" Before Priss had any time to react, he leaned forward and locked lips with hers.

The shock and pure surprise left her immobilized for a few seconds, until she regained her ability to move again and pulled away. She rapidly stood up and turned her back to him, still trying to process what just happened. She closed her eyes and clenched her teeth to stop her from screaming out loud. They had kissed. He just kissed her. What. The. Hell?

She heard him stand up on the floor himself and when she turned around, she saw him only a few inches away. She backed away and raised her hand.

He knew that the slap was coming, yet he was taken by complete surprise when the hit came. He staggered and lifted his hand to the sore area where a red mark were forming under the fur.

"That was NOT funny, Bentley!" She growled at him, feeling her cheeks slowly turn red.

Bentley smiled faintly. "Sorry, Prissy..." He said and saw her raise the hand again for a second slap. He closed his eyes and prepared for the impact, but it never came. He carefully opened one eye.

She just stood there, eyes tightly shut and her clenched fist halfway up in the air. "What do you think you're doing?" She hissed through clenched teeth.

Bentley let his eyes wander to the floor again. "I-I dunno..." He answered and shrugged. He looked up at her again. She hadn't moved from the spot, but she had opened her eyes again and was staring at him with mixed emotions.

He carefully took a step towards her.

She didn't back away or flinch.

"You're mad, aren't ya?" He asked, tilted his head and took another step forward.

"A tad, yes..." She answered, still with her teeth clenched together. "Why are you doin' this?"

"I... I'm not sure... You're weird!"

"I'M weird? Me? You really are crazy, ain't ya?"

Bentley snickered and slowly lifted his hand, placing it behind her neck. He picked with the thin band keeping her hair together and let it loose. "You should keep your hair like this all the time! It suits you!" He said with a grin, that almost spread to Priss.

"Definitely crazy..." She mumbled as he leaned forward once again.

Their lips locked for the second time in a new kiss, and this time Priss didn't pull away. Maybe it was the all the alcohol that dimmed her rational thinking, she wasn't sure. But there was one thing she was sure of: the Nutcase was one hell off a kisser!

**… Oookay, I have like, NO idea what I'm writing anymore xD!**

**I'm a huge fan of love stories, but when it comes to writing something like that myself, I find myself rather... awful at it o_o...**

**Sorry if that last part sucked o_o... I'm not used to writing that kind of things... **

**In fact, I hadn't planned for any romance at all, lol xD!**

**Plus I'm awfully tired, since I slept like, three hours or something last night ._."...**

**Meh...**

**Goodnight! (Or morning... whatever, I don't even know what time it is anymore TT_TT...)  
**

**Delilah OUT!**


	28. Return of the Sheriff

**Yay! Turns out I've got a wonderful case of flu! JUST what I wanted -.-!**

**So, sorry if things gets out of control in this chapter... I'm not quite sure if my mind works as it should right now, with 102 Fahrenheit fever (think that's 'bout 40 or somethin' celsius, our thermometer only shows in Fh (It's 'Murrican, duh)) and all... That would also explain the previous chapter, I'm still in processing mode from rereading it xD**

**Oh, and this is probably going to be another long chapter!**

***** Chapter Twentyeight : Return of the Sheriff *****

Priscilla was in the borderland between being asleep and awake. She just lay there in her bed, eyes closed and breathing heavy.

'What time is it?' She thought, her eyes still closed. 'Never mind. The sheriff could manage ONE morning without me, right? ' She snickered. Today, she decided to sleep in.

That is, until she felt someones arm around her waist. Her eyes both widened when she felt the someone move.

She slowly turned her head around and felt something in her stomach turn when she saw Bentleys shaggy fur.

"Hell no!" She whispered and turned her face straight forward. "No! No no no!" She winced as a few faint memories from last night resurfaced. They had been dancing, sort of, when the two of them collided and he got knocked out. They carried him all the way to the hotel. He woke up and Rango and Hicks left. They started talking, even though Bentley was behaving strangely. And then... They had kissed?

To her, the memories felt unreal, like nothing more than foggy dreams. Even though she tried to tell herself otherwise, she knew that they were real.

She tried several times to close her eyes and count to ten. Every time she imagined herself waking up in her own bed, in her own room, all alone and no Bentley. And every time, she was wrong.

Eventually she slipped out of his arms and pushed herself up to a sitting position.

"Not good! This is soo not good!" Priss grabbed her head between both hands and squeaked. "This can't be happening!"

She flinched when Bentley suddenly moved, yawned and turned his back to her. She waited, tense as a spring, for him to wake up. To her relief, he kept on snoozing.

She looked around the room. She could easily tiptoe out of here, just as long as the big ball of fur didn't woke up... And hopefully, he wouldn't remember that this happened either!

As silent as she could muster, she placed her feet on the floor and started gathering her clothes together. The fact that they were spread around the floor didn't make this bizarre situation less awkward...

Just a few moments later, she was dressed and ready to sneak away. With one hand on the doorknob and her boots in the other, she threw a last, quick glance at Bentley. Just to make sure that he was still asleep, when she notice something off with the fur on his back. It looked messy, somehow. Like there were some patches missing.

She found herself hesitating and put the boots on the floor, next to the victim of curiosity.

'Damn it...' She turned around again. 'Of all the bad ideas you've had, this is without a doubt the worst one yet!' She told herself as she sneaked back to the bed, where he was still snoozing away.

She slowly and carefully climbed back up on the bed and reached out for the thick mane along his back, lifting away a tuft of the dark brown hair and saw a long, white mark reaching from his shoulder, all the way down to his lower back. And over there was another. And another, and another... His back was nearly covered with long, white marks.

Priss gasped loudly and jerked back when she realized what they were: scars! Many scars! And they looked like the kind of scars you'd get from a whip!?

"It was my fault..." His sudden voice made Priss jump back in surprise again and this time she nearly fell off the bed. Bentley sat up and grinned. "Sorry I startled ya, Prissy!" He chuckled.

"B-Bentley! Y-your... Back! W-what happened!?" Priss exclaimed with her eyes wide.

"Yep! I'm back alright!"

"Bentley!"

"Yes?"

"I'm serious!" She growled and pointed to his back. "What the hell happened?! Whaddya mean 'your fault'?!"

The grin disappeared from his face and looked down. "Well, that's what happens when you talk back... We had some disagreements every now and them, and they didn't like it when someone like me won the argument..." He said and shrugged.

"They? Who're they?!"

"Why do you wanna know, anyway?"

Priss opened her mouth to reply, but he had a point there. She closed it again and went silent. Why did she wanna know? Why did she even care?! Even bigger question was: what was she doing here in the first place?! This guy was one of the lowlifes that kept her whole hometown hostage while their sheriff had been sent unarmed out in the desert to search for three lethal outlaws! A suicide-mission! This whole mess was just as much his fault as the rest of them! And she just woke up in bed with him! She should hate him! But yet... She couldn't... Why?!

"I-I... I don't know! I just do, okay?" She said and stubbornly crossed her arms, fully aware of the redness that slowly started to form on her cheeks.

Bentley shrugged once again. "I don't get why you're making such a big deal out of it! It's in the past anyway, and I hate looking back at the past!" He said with a grumpy mumbling.

Priss noticed that she tightly clasped her knees with her hands and felt the claws dig into the fabric of her pants. "I'm sorry. I-I just got a little worried, that's all..." She said with a sigh and eased the grip on her kneecaps.

"Hey, relax! I ain't even mad!" Bentley chuckled and gently put his hand on hers. She flinched when their hands made contact, but she didn't pull it back. "I mean sure, I had some troubles with them overseers, they seemed to favor me as their little punching bag, but I frankly don't care 'bout it. 'Specially not now. And besides, I can admit that I... " He stopped when he realized that the secret he had been trying to keep from her slipped out and she was staring wide-eyed at him. "Never mind what I said!"

"Overseers...? Wait a minute... Y-you were a...!?" She didn't get to finish the sentence though, since Bentley lashed out and placed his hand over her mouth.

"DON'T say that word! I hate it! Please?" He begged and his large ears hung low. He looked away, but didn't remove his hand. "I-I..." He mumbles and slowly eased the grip.

Priss frowned and jerked her head away and freed herself. She was about to say something again when three rapid knocks on the door interrupted her, and made both of them almost literally jump up in the air in fright.

Priss quickly flung herself down on the floor and managed to roll in under the bed just as the door opened and Scrange peeked in.

"G'mornin', buddy!" Bentley said and pretended to stretch.

The rat nodded sharply. "I thought I heard voices?" He said suspiciously and turned his head to look around.

"Voices? Have ya been lookin' too deep down the bottle again?"

"Har de har har! Anyhow you haven't by any chance seen Priscilla around, eh?"

"Errm, ya do know I just woke up, right? I haven't even seen my own FEET yet!"

"Hey, it never hurts to ask! Besides, you WERE the one who saw her last night..."

"Isn't she in her room?"

"Nope"

"What do you want with her anyway?"

"It's not me, its the brothers. They asked for her just a while ago. I'm not sure what they want...

Oh, and Rango needs to talk to you, like NOW!"

"'Bout what?"

"I don't know! I don't know anything! I'm just the messenger!"

"Then how do you know it's urgent?"

"Because he told me so! I have no idea what happened, but he seems kinda pissed..."

Suddenly Scrange noticed the boots next to the door.

"Wait a sec, whose are they?"

"Eerrr, mine?"

"... Yours?"

"That's what I said, right?"

"But aren't those a bit small? Like, woman-sized?"

"Well, excuuuse me for wanting to be different!"

Both Scrange and Priss facepalmed at the same time.

"Never mind!" Scrange muttered and left. He slammed the door shut just as he finished the sentence and they could hear his footsteps echo all the way down the hall.

"Well, it could've gone worse..." Priss said and slowly crawled out from her hiding spot. She was covered with dust from top to toe and dusting off her arm caused her to sneeze.

"Yeah, lucky he's so dense!" Bentley agreed and nodded. Priss snorted out a laugh. But after that they both went silent, just watching each other. Great. More awkwardness...

"I-I've gotta go..." Priss said eventually to break the awkward silence. "Gotta go n' see what they want..." She scurried off to the door and yanked it open.

"Wait, Prissy!" He shouted after her, making her stop in the doorway. His eyes flicked nervously and a faint blush were visible on his cheeks. "Erm.. I... Uh, I'm sorry... 'B-bout yesterday..." He slurred.

She answered with a blush of her own. "Huh? Oh, yeah... W-well, it's okay... I think..." She said in a hoarse voice and fled out the door with the boots in her hands, before she made an even bigger fool out of herself!

Priss hurried down the hallway to her own room, bolted through the door and leaned her back against the wall, staring up in the ceiling. Her cheeks felt like they were burning and she had to bite herself in the tongue to stop herself from screaming.

'What the hell are you doing, stupid girl?!' She shut her eyes tight and cursed herself. 'What's wrong with you?! He's one of THEM! You can't just go and fall in love like that!' She opened her eyes again and looked at her scared facial expression in the mirror on top of the bureau. What? No! She wasn't in love! She couldn't! Not in him!

"Why does he have to be so... so..." She silently growled to herself and looked away from the mirror. This wasn't happening. It just couldn't be happening!

Then another thing struck her mind; the scars. They WERE from whips, weren't they? She had heard of owners mistreating their slaves, but she could never have imagined that is was THIS bad! No wonder he didn't like to talk about it!

"W-what have you been through?" She whispered and glanced back at the door she just came through.

Bentley kept staring at the door even after she left, with a smile on his lips.

No nightmares! He leaned back and stared up at the ceiling. She had taken the nightmares away! He closed his eyes, his smile grew even wider. 'Ya just gotta love that girl...' He thought and opened one of his eyes, glancing at the door. 'Wonder if Prissy... likes me too?'

"So? These tunnels have been here for ages!" Priss said, and rolled her eyes. The two porcupine brothers had discovered the tunnels that wound under the town. The masters of observation!

"Yeah, but look at this!" Flitch said and tapped on the dark tunnel walls with the handle of his gun. A small rock got loose and a miniature stream of water started to flow down the wall. "Has this been happening for ages?"

Priss frowned and shook her head. "Could it be the lake?"

Fledge said something in Spanish and Priss cocked an eyebrow at Flitch in the wait for a translation: "Could be an underground lake that formed when your town got flooded. How long time ago was it again?"

"Ten years, and the lake formed 'bout a month later. We thought everything would dry up, but it still hasn't..." She looked at the wall with a new fascination. "We never imagined that it could be because of an underground lake!"

"And this could become a problem in the future. You saw how thin the wall is, right? Anything that would cause a motion in the ground, could make this wall tremble and SPLASH!" Flitch said with a frown, while Fledge added sound effects. "It wouldn't surprise me if the roof is just as thin! And if the roof of these tunnels were to give in... Well, you get the picture!"

She frowned. He was right. This town was practically sitting on a ticking bomb! A pretty wet bomb, but still! "How did you discover this?"

Fledge said something with 'Coral' and Fledge translated: "It was Coral. She was burrowing around in the ground when she discovered this and told Rango, who in turn told us to tell you!"

Priss nodded and looked up at the roof of the tunnel they were in. "Thanks, it's good to know..." She said without looking at them, and was once again wondering why a coralsnake would dig around in the dirt.

"De nada, señora" Both of the porcupine brothers said in unison and exited back to the surface. Priss remained in the gloomy light of the torch she was holding. She had to tell sheriff Rango this when he came back. If he came back...

When Priss later resurfaced again, she saw that a large group of people had gathered in the main street. Curious, and a little bit scared, she ran up to the crowd and saw Beans. She hadn't been able to talk with Beans for days now, but instead of rushing up to her, she hesitated and slowed down.

She couldn't imagine that the any of the townspeople where so happy with their ex-deputy right now. She was afraid of what Beans would say if she saw her...

She made herself look as small as possible and squeezed through the crowd until she finally saw what it all was about.

It was Rango and Wounded Bird. Seemingly having a stare down. Or stare up in for Rangos part...

"You're really pissin' me off, buddy!" Rango said in that cold, dark voice Priss hadn't heard since he spoke to Rango. "I'm NOT in the mood for a game of wits right now!"

"That's because you know I'm right." Wounded Bird answered and stared down in the lizards face with his unyielding face.

"What's goin' on?" Bentley suddenly appeared seemingly out of thin air next to Priss.

"I-I don't know..." She answered and shook her head.

"If you don't shut up right now, then I'll think dusk will have to come early t'day, eh?" Rango said and threw his poncho aside, fingering on one of his revolvers. That was enough for Priss to take action, she didn't have any idea what they were talking about or what happened, but no one threatened Wounded Bird in her presence. No one.

She quickly lashed out and drew out Bentleys gun from its holster and in the span of a few seconds, Rango ended up being the one having a gun pointed at him. He turned around when he heard the click of the hammer and grinned.

"The hell you are!" She hissed and took a few steps towards the lizard. "You shoot him n' I'll put a bullet in yer head, ya hear?!"

"Sure, sure" Rango scoffed. "But next time, check from who you're taking the gun from. It may not even be loaded!"

Priss frowned and glanced down at the gun. It wasn't loaded. "Are you fuckin' kidding me?" She spat and cocked her head at Bentley. He shrugged.

"Ya think I'm stupid 'nuff to let him walk around with a loaded gun? Who knows what kind of mess he'll create?!" Rango said and drew his own gun and turned back to Wounded Bird. "Now, where were we?"

"You know the reason I couldn't let you take care of the child. Heard many stories about you. You raised an innocent little girl to become an icecold killer like you. Always in danger of becoming someones next kill. That's no life for a child."

Rango made a bemused face and aimed his gun at the crow.

In frustration, she lifted the gun to throw it in the lizards head instead, but Bentley yanked his revolver back.

"Sorry, but I'll have to take that back, thank you!" He said and held it out of Priss reach when she turned around. He threw the gun away and instead he caught her in a vice-like embrace. "Hey, it's okay! Calm down!"

"Okay? OKAY?! Why you... You...!" Priss growled and squirmed to get free. "I oughta kill you!" She tried to break free from his arms, but to no use. It was like being caught in the grip of a snake. "Let me go now or I'll rip yer head off!"

Rango glanced at Bentley struggling to hold Priscilla back. "Get her outta here, Bentley!" He said and waved with the gun. Bentley gave him a disappointed frown and his ears drooped. "I know... I know..." Rango mumbled and turned his attention to the crow in front of him again. He knew that Priss barely trusted him as it was, she never had a reason to. And this wasn't going to improve their relation to each other either. But there's no turning back now. Anger management issues really could put you in a pickle every now and then, huh?

Bentley sighed sadly and turned his attention back to the ballistic aye-aye in his arms. She would refuse to just simply come with him. Knowing that she'd try to make it as hard for him as she possibly, humanly could was enough for him to make a fatigued grimace.

"Priscilla..." Wounded Bird said and turned his head slightly to her direction. She stopped trying to writhe loose when she heard her mentors steady voice. She knew, judging by the tone in his voice, that she was going to get a scolding. It sort of made her feel like a little girl who just got caught with her hand in the cookie jar again. "There's no use, stop acting like a child! If this lizard wish to kill me then so be it. Keep your feelings under control and don't let our deaths consume you."

Priss leaned her head forward, burying her face in Bentleys chest and felt tears burn behind her eyelids. "But... Bird...!" She sniveled with a muffled voice and clenched teeth.

"Besides..." Wounded Bird continued and turned to Rango again, still talking to Priss. "You know bountyhunter will be in deep shit when sheriff returns..." He said in a slightly mocking tone.

Rango rolled his eyes and lifted the gun once more. "Yeah, IF he returns that is. I'm actually starting to doubt! Maybe we all thought too highly of the good sheriff?" He said with a faint grin tugging at his smile. "Anyway, anyone who doesn't wanna watch this just simply look away, 'kay?" He used his thumb to ready the hammer on the revolver.

Bentley held a comforting arm around Priss' shoulders as they began to make their way through the crowd of people. She accidentally caught eyecontact with Beans. But they didn't hold it for more than a second before Priss turned her face away.

Suddenly a gunshot was heard, followed by a surprised yelp and she couldn't help but to turn around. It hadn't been Rangos gun that had fired. His gun had been sent flying to the ground and Rango himself was shaking his hand as if he just burned it on something. He turned around with an angry growl, but the growl died away. Instead, it was replaced with a pleased smirk.

To the west of the town, five persons stood. Three rattlesnakes, and a black roadrunner next to a chameleon. One of the rattlesnakes, a female, held a smoking revolver with her rattle.

"Good job sis! You totally missed him!" Blake complained and shook his head.

Jolene snorted and put the gun back in its holster. "I COULD'VE killed him, y'know! But I don't like shootin' people in their backs!" She said and tilted her snout skyward in a stubborn manner.

"Yeah... Sure..." Blake teased and rolled his eyes. He barely managed to dodge the metal rattle of his big brother when it came swooshing.

"What was that for?!" Blake hissed angrily. He hadn't been hit or anything, but it was still the thought that count...

"Because we haven't been here for five minutes and yet you two have already made us look like fools!" Jake replied with an impatient growl.

Priss couldn't believe what she saw, and probably neither could the rest of the people. He was back! He was finally back! And he brought the snakes! One part of her was happier than she had ever been before, except for when she received the deputys badge. The other part was afraid, terrified, of what sheriff Rango would say and think once he found out that she was one them now? Sure, she had been reluctantly recruited, but still...

**Crap I'm tired -.-... I do not approve of all this snot flooding out of my nose 24/7...**

**Anyway, that's all for this chapter! Not sure when the next chapter will be out, probably just in a few days, if I'm still free from school even after the weekend xD...  
**

**Oh and btw Niko, I know you're reading this: THAT PART IN THE BEGINNING WAS FOR YOU! Now please SHUT UP and STOP nag 'bout it xD! **

**Delilah OUT!**


	29. Reason for revenge

**Awright I'm finally back :D! **

**I think the fever's finally gone, which means I can go back to writing again :D! Yaay!**

**So sorry for the two previous chapters, I really shouldn't write when I'm sick... Things will only get weird and stupid _...**

**Anyway, here's chapter... 29? Holy shiet, already :o?!**

***** Chapter Twentynine : Reason For Revenge *****

"I-I can't believe it! Arrow! You're back!" Rango the bountyhunter exclaimed happily when the black roadrunner freed herself from the chameleons hand and hurried to her real masters side. With the plume on her head risen, she danced around the lizard, flapping her wings and nudging him with her beak. Rango laughed and scratched her on the neck. She didn't seem to be hurt. That's good! Actually, she looked to be in pretty good shape! A little thin, perhaps.

The other Rango grinded his teeth. Really?! After all this time, he would be happier to see his darn bird than the snakes he 'needed' to see? What a flippant jerk! Apparently, the snakes thought the same thing. Jolene cleared her throat and impatiently tapped her rattle on the ground. Finally the bountyhunter turned to the four newly arrivals.

"And wow! I just gotta say, WOW! You're still alive! AND you brought the all of the three siblings! How did ya do it?!" He said and kept scratching the silly bird.

"Well, it did help when you killed the Edwards son..." The sheriff answered with a serious voice.

"Ah, well I thought that little story would come in handy..." The lizard cocked a brow at Jolene. "You always had a weak spot for the little ones. Isn't that right, lil' Jo!"

Jolene snorted. "Since when did you murder kids?" She slowly shook her rattle, emitting a faint rustling sound.

"Since last week."

"You're disgusting!"

"Sticks n' stones, sweetie..."

"Sweetie?!"

"Yes, hun~?"

"I'll kill you!"

"Without a goodbye kiss?"

Jolene drew her revolver again. "Fine! Pucker up, bad boy!" She growled and aimed, but before she could pull the trigger on him, her brother stopped her. Jake put his rattle over her gun and shook his head. Jolene lowered it again with a quiet growl.

"Hey, could you two lovebirds quit it already?!" Blake moaned in annoyance when his sister started to squabble with the outlaw.

"I think I agree with Blake, for once..." Jake agreed with a low murmur. He turned his face to Rango and hissed. "Whaddya want? It's not like we haven't got more important stuff do to than to argue with you..."

Rango the bountyhunter crossed his arms and was about to reply when Sam stepped out from the livery, shotgun in hand and eyes burning with rage.

"You!" He cocked his gun. Blake hissed and the pupils in his eyes shrunk to thin slits. "I'LL KILL YA, BLAKE! I'LL KILL YA!" Sam screamed and lifted his shotgun, only to have it yanked out of his hands by Hicks.

"Stay back, kiddo!" He said and pushed the kid back. Sam looked like he was going to explode with anger.

"Fuck off ya ol' coot! Gimme back my gun and I'll kill this son of a bitch!"

"Wait, wait, WAIT A GODDARN SECOND HERE!" Blake exclaimed and bared his fangs. "This is 'bout Isabelle, innit? Ya gotta be kiddin' me?! You KNOW I didn't kill her!"

"LIAR! It must've been you!" Sams voice nearly broke. "A snakebite in the neck?! SHE TRUSTED YOU, YOU BASTARD!"

"I. Didn't. Kill. HER!"

"QUIT LYIN'!"

" Fer the last time: I AIN'T LYING, YA STUPID FLEABAG!"

"MONSTER!"

"RETARD!"

"FREAK!"

"EUNUCH!"

Hicks managed to hold the young bobcat from lunging at the rattlesnake, while Jolene and Jake had to combine their forces to keep their younger brother from ripping the bobcat apart. But at least the two fighters could still shout obscenities at each other.

"Get him outta here, Red!" Rango said, clearly annoyed, and waved with his hand. "This day has already gone to hell in a handbasket, the last thing I need is the brat screwin' ev'rythin' up..."

"Whaddya think I'm tryin' to do?" Hicks hissed in response. "Listen kid, you'll get yer shot sooner or later!"

Sam growled in dismay, but gave up. "That better be sooner..." He said and gave the rattlesnake a last, spiteful look before walking back to the livery. Blake mumbled something incoherent and turned away.

Rango sighed and shook his head before turning back to the three snakes. "Now, where were we?"

"You were 'bout to tell us why it was so important to get the snakes for ya..." Sheriff Rango said with clenched teeth. He was talking to the bountyhunter, but his eyes were turned to the gathering of townspeople. The return of their sheriff seemed to have sparked something in their hearts. The previously weary and dull expressions most of them had gotten during the past nightmarish weeks, had been replaced by a hopeful and victorious face. Some were even cheering on sheriff Rango and the snakes with loud hollers and whoops.

He searched for Beans in the group, and sighed with relief when he saw her, standing among the rest of the folks. Her face shining brighter than any of the others. Lucky for the bountyhunter, she seemed to be unharmed. That was good.

He began to search for Priss. It took a while for him to notice her, standing far in the back. He managed to get a few seconds eyecontact with her, but she quickly turned away and pulled her hat down over her eyes. This wasn't like her. She seemed to be ashamed. Over that she had switched sides?

"Oh yeah! That was it!" The other Rango snapped his finger. "Now, Jake. I know that you know why I gotta have a lil' chat with ya, right?" Jake didn't answer, he just slowly nodded and kept his eyes fixated at the lizard. "Hey, it's nothing personal, y'know! Just business! And lil' Jo, not only have you got a nice bounty on yer pretty lil' head, but you also tried to kill me once. And you nearly did it too!" Jolene snickered when he rubbed his shoulder. "Ya have no idea how much this bastard hurts when it gets cold!"

"Aaaww!" She teased and tilted her head. "I'm so sorry, but you WERE pointing yer gun at Jacob, y'know. You've only got yourself to blame, Rang-Rang!"

"I really don't like it when people almost kills me... I really don't... And especially not when they call me 'Rang-Rang'!" The bountyhunter frowned and slowly shook his head. "Anyway, Blake. Ya lil' shithead, you just got a large bounty from the mayor of Diego City. But that's not the reason why I wanna to rip yer head off right here on the spot..."

Blake snorted and was about to come with a dry response when he caught something in the corner of his eye. Or someone. He turned his head and grinned widely. "Coral?! I'll be damned! Long time no see, sweetie!" Coral had been drawn by the gunfire and was now watching the sand colored rattlesnake from afar with mixed feelings. Blake cocked his head to the bountyhunter. "What is this? Some sort of old friends meetup?" He frowned. "Hey! Is that skanky black diamondback from New Mexico gonna show up too? Gee, I told her; it ain't MY kid! I ain't payin' shit for someone elses runt! It's not my fault she can't even keep track on who's father to who! Even OUR ma could!"

Jake and Jolene simultaneously rolled their eyes. They've met the brat he was talking about, and that kid could impossibly be someone else than his son. He had both the looks and the attitude.

Coral snorted and slithered away to the bountyhunter. Arrow chirped happily when she saw the coralsnake coming towards them. Coral stopped and used the tip of her tail to scratch the bird on her favorite spot; the neck.

"Nevermind... Where have ya been all this time, Coral?" Blake snickered when he got an angry look from the female snake. "Oh yeah, you're still a mute, huh? Sorry sweetie, forgot 'bout that!"

Coral tightly shut her eyes closed and looked away. The bountyhunter put a gentle hand on her neck and turned to Blake with an angry frown. "Y'get it now?" He hissed. "The reason I want to rip yer bloody head off right now on the spot, is b'cause ya broke my lil' girls heart! And none of us can forgive ya for that!"

Blake flinched. "WHAT?! Bullshit! Ya don't even have a kid! I know you and Clara never got any...! Wait a second..." He switched his eyes from Coral to Rango, then back again while he tried to connect the dots. Rango, both of them, could swear that a lightbulb appeared over his head. "Wait, ya don't say...? Holy cow! This is WICKED! You're his kid, Coral?! Do I dare to ask 'bout the mother?"

"She's adopted, if ya wanna to know... And don't EVER mention that name again..."

"Wow! Did you two know 'bout this?!" Blake turned to his older siblings. They both scowled at him.

"You're despicable sometimes, ya know that?" Jolene spat. "You're not even the least 'bit sorry?"

"Hey! It's not my fault! D'you have any idea how many women there are out there?! And there's only ONE of me! I can't be everywhere at the same time, y'know!" That response got him a heavy blow to the head by his sisters rattle. "OWCH! What was that for?!" Another, heavier smack down from his brothers gatlin-rattle, caused him to faceplant in the sand.

"That's for bein' our brother!" Jake and Jolene said at the same time when Blake pulled his head from the ground, spitting dirt and sand.

"I get it! It get it!" He splurted out some sand that managed to get stuck under his tongue. "Gee! I'm sorry, 'kay!?"

Coral snorted. The half-assed apology, NOT accepted!

Priss shook her head at the display. So, Rango had just spilled his intentions? All of them? Just like that? Why would he do that? That was just stupid! Right? "So, what happens now?" She asked Bentley, but didn't get an answer. She turned around only to discover that he was gone. She looked around and saw that Hicks and Scrange were gone too. And the brothers where nowhere to be seen either! However, Bad Bill and his gang had showed up instead. What a shame, everything just seemed so much better when they were patrolling the borders and NOT having them in town!

Suddenly she heard someone whistle at her. Turning around, she saw Fledge wave at her from the livery stable. She scurried away to the large building and went inside. Everyone had gathered here, their roadrunners all suited up.

"Woah! What's goin' on?" She asked when Fledge gave her Birdies reins.

"We have to retreat for a while..." Hicks answered when he climbed up in the saddle of his dark golden colored runner.

"What?!"

"Yeah, all our previous plans were thrown t'hell when Coral discovered that underground lake..." Hicks grimaced. "And then of course t'sheriff decides to show up with the snakes. I can't imagine Rango bein' all too happy at the moment..."

Priss threw a quick glance out at the street. "So what's he's doin' now is..."

"Buying us some time to get plan B in motion? Yep!" Scrange filled in while he and Bentley were herding the rest of the critters into the corral on the backside.

"Plan B?" Priss raised an eyebrow. "What's plan B?"

"Basically causin' as much havoc and commotion as possible, without the ground caving in under us, before disappearing into the desert!" Bentley said with a mischievous grin . "Trust me, it'll be FUN!"

Rango the bountyhunter threw an impatient glance at the livery. 'What's taking them so long?! And now Bad Bill has showed up too! Great!' He thought to himself, and shook his head from side to side with a warning growl as Bad Bill fingered on his gun. The angry smirk on his face made it obvious that he was mere seconds away from shooting the sheriff. He turned to the other Rango.

"What?" He grumbled and folded his arms.

"What's the matter, Rang-Rang?" Jolene noticed Rangos impatient behavior. "Startin' t'get cold feet?"

"Nah, was just thinkin'..." He answered with a shrug. "I didn't expect you guys back today, and we had to change our original plan since we found somethin' quite worryin' 'bout this 'ere town..."

This got the sheriffs attention. "What? W-what did you find?" Sheriff Rango gulped. "It's not cursed like Skeleton Cliffs, is it?" He started to study the townspeople for signs of the sickness.

The bountyhunter bursted out in a roaring laughter and was about to answer when he heard a gunshot, coming from the livery, followed by the rumble of many feet racing towards the main street. He called for Arrow and within seconds, he had jumped up in the saddle and took off his hat in a comical bow for the snakes. Suddenly, at two dozen of roadrunners and javelins came stampeding through the gates of the stable and head down the main street. People screamed and hurried to get out of the way. Rango the bountyhunter mumbled something and rolled his eyes. A stampede? Sure, it wasn't as rough a dynamite, but still! Couldn't they find something not so... brutal on the ground?

"Sorry to depart so soon, but you did come at a pretty bad time." He said with a grin. Jake frowned and readied his gatlin. "Not to worry though, I'll be back b'fore ya know it!" Just as he finished the sentence, the group of critters came rumbling past, allowing him and Arrow to disappear in the commotion.

Sheriff Rango jumped out of the way to not get trampled to death. He ran into the nearest building, a house. But before he entered through the door, he saw Priss passing on her roadrunner. Rango shouted her name, which miraculously seemed to carry on over the noise the stampede were making. She stopped and turned around, but lowered her head when she saw who it was that had called for her. Rango shook his head in disbelief when he saw Priss miming 'I'm sorry', before turning around and continued to follow the stampede. He shook of the shock and retreated into the house, where he was greeted by a group of Dirtonians. Rango put on a strong mask for his people and started to question everyone about, well, everything he could think of.

Jake cursed and started firing away among the fleeing animals. He hit a few roadrunners, scaring the stampede to go around him and his sister. No matter how much he searched, that bountyhunter and his goons were nowhere to be found. Jake cursed again. He should've shot him as soon as he opened his mouth...

When the dust had settled, sheriff Rango and the rest of the Dirtonians peeked out from their hideouts. The animals had calmed down and had gathered around the lake, but none of the outlaws were to be seen. Neither was Blake for that matter.

Rango was the first one to step out in the street and walked up to the two snakes. But he didn't get time to say anything before he got interrupted by the sound of running feet. He turned around just in time for Beans to throw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. He had been unprepared for the sudden hug and staggered back, but still he found himself responding by wrapping his arms around her.

"You're back!" She said and buried her face in his neck. "I-I've been so worried!"

"Aw, Beans! Don't worry, I'm back!" He said reassuring and gently stroke Beans over her cheek. "And the next time I see that other Rango, I'll make sure that he'll wish he never came here in the first place!" He looked up at Jake. "Because he'll be back, right?"

Jake clenched his teeth together. "He has never broken a promise. Not once..." He mumbled, still mad at himself for letting the bountyhunter escape so easily.

"Am I the only one worried concerned 'bout the tranquility?" Jolene hissed and looked around, searching for her other brother. "Where the hell is Blake?!"

But just as she finished her sentence, her brother came crashing through the wall of a building next to them. Coral came after, diving for the ground, but were stopped in midair by the diamondback.

"Where do ya think you're goin', sweetie?" He said and wrapped himself around the smaller snake. She hissed at him and tried to bite him, but missed. "I'd appreciate some HELP over here!" Blake shouted at his siblings as he tried to hold his prisoner still without getting bit. A task trickier than it seemed.

Jolene turned to Jake and frowned. "Whaddya think? Should we help him out?"

Jake snorted. "Why?"

"... Yeah, you're right"

Priss was completely lost in her own thoughts, just numbly following the others without any sense of direction. She tried to tell herself to stop and turn back to town over and over again, but that wouldn't happen. And she knew it...

That look on sheriff Rangos face. No matter how hard she tried, she would probably never get that sad, disappointed frown out of her head. He had all rights to be disappointed at her right now.

Suddenly she felt their road going downhill and she felt walls closing in around her. She looked up and immediately recognized the place they had arrived in.

"The Crystal Canyon? What are we doin' in the Crystal Canyon?!" She asked the man closest to her; Hicks.

"You'll see..." Was the unsatisfying answer she got.

Rango in the lead stopped at a certain wall and jumped down on the ground. He ran up to the wall and started to search for something.

Bad Bill rode up to him, his roadrunner looking like it would fall apart any minute. "What was that all 'bout, mate?! Ya promised you'd let me get mah hands on t'sheriff once he returned!"

"Shut up!" Rango spat and turned to the angry gila monster. "In case ya failed to notice, NOTHING has been goin' as planned for ANY of us t'day! So you can either shut up and stop bitchin' 'bout it, or get the hell out!" With that said, he turned to the rocky wall again and found the small crack he was searching for. Bill solemnly growled something to himself but didn't say anything else after that. Rango grabbed one side of the thin crack and pulled the whole wall back with a loud, scraping sound. Priss' eyes widened when she saw the hole hiding behind a thin, wooden decoy wall, perfectly camouflaged to blend in with the rest of the environment.

"Alright everyone, git in! I dunno if we're followed, and I sure as hell don't wanna stay an' find out!" Hicks said and looked around. "Wait, where's Coral?"

Rango frowned when he noticed that she was missing. "Oh well, she knows where to find us..." He mumbled and was the one who went in last into the hole and made sure to close the wall behind him.

They entered into a massive cavern, lit up by hundreds of torches. The cavern was more like a small town; there were loads of rooms carved into the rock, and a stair made from both rock and wood led to an upper floor with even more rooms and doors.

"This place is AMAZING!" Priss whispered to herself. This gotta be one of the legendary hideouts the smugglers built!

But instead of being abandoned and empty as it should be, this cavern was bustling with life. There were people everywhere, scurrying back and forth, talking loudly with each other.

And there was one voice that were heard especially well, even through all the ruckus going on;

"HEJJ! MOVE! OUTTA MAJ WAJ!" Along with lots of foreign words Priss didn't recognize. Soon enough, the owner of the voice appeared through the crowd of people. He was a quite small, gray snake with a black zigzag pattern on his pack. He wore a cylinder hat decorated with a colorful band and two red pompoms. Large, reddish brown eyes scanned the group that just arrived and the snake grinned.

Rango walked up to stranger and stood next him. "Sam, Priss, Bad Bill and company." He said and nodded to the snake. "Lemme introduce you to my good friend an' ally: Jonas Smith!"

**Y****es. Blake is an asshole. And he's goddam proud of it!**

**Jonas is a character that I've been extremely cussy with, throwing him in and out of the story. That is, until I made up my mind and decided that everything would probably make more sense with him present ^^".  
That, and I've always wanted to write about an angry Swede with a fancy hat, hehehe...**

**Anyway, I'll be back next time xD! **

**Delilah OUT! (Btw, why am I always ending everything I do like this -.-?)**


	30. The Smuggler King

**So, uh, yeah... Chapter 30 already, and we've still got a long way to go xD...**

**Let's just get straight to the story, eh?**

***** Chapter Thirty : The Smuggler King *****

While the rest of the gang were leaving the roadrunners at an stable-section carved out from the rock, Priss looked with a sceptically raised eyebrow at the viper. Jonas Smith, eh? Why did that name sound so familiar?

Jonas cocked his head to Rango. "Aj didn't expekt jo back so soon! Got 'em all-ready, or?"

Rango shook his head. "Nah, we had to change our plans..." He answered with a shrug. This caused the gray viper to chuckle.

"Jo really need to vork on a littel ting called 'planning a-head'! Dont forget Murphys Lavv: if someting kan go vrong, it vill!" He snickered.

"Hey! Are you lecturin' me?" Rango said sternly and crossed his arms. "YOU are the one owin' yer life to me, y'know! If it weren't for me, you'd be rottin' six feet down by now!" If it weren't for the grin on his lips, one would think that he was actually angry at the snake.

Jonas shrugged. "Nah, I'm just saying!" He leaned closer. "Be-sides, Aj would-ent mind if jo kept that saving-maj-life ting down! Aj've got an image to keep upp!" He whispered with an annoyed frown.

"Oh, yeah! I forgot!" Rango snickered. "You're still s'pposed to be an...

The viper interrupted the outlaw by pointing his tailtip at the lizard. "DONT push it!" He warned with a slight growl.

"Wait a minute...!" Priss said and got the attention of the two reptilians. "I've seen yer face before, on one of the posters back in town! You're THE Jonas Smith, right? The 'Smuggling King' from the North?"

Jonas got a dreamy look on his face. "Ah yes! Good old moder Nord..." He said pondering. "Almost making me a littel bit homesik!" But then he turned to Priss again and frowned. "Jo are a new face, are jo not?" He turned back to Rango. "Actually, Aj se a lot of new faces in jor grupp?"

"Uh, yeah actually only two of 'em are mine." Rango said and started introducing Jonas to the newcomers. "That bobcat over there in the stable, Mr Sunshine, is Sam. He's a bit pissed at Blake for killin' his girl. And the big eyed lady over there is Priscilla, former deputy of Dirt. The rest of the newcomers b'longs to Bad Bill..."

Priss crossed her arms. "S'cuse me, but I'm still considering myself the deputy of Dirt. Unless sheriff Rango says otherwise!"

Rango raised his eyebrows at her. "Really? Then what are you doin' with us outlaws, instead of stayin' back in Dirt?"

"Well, somebody's gotta keep an eye on you!"

"Why don't ya go an' keep an eye on yer boyfriend instead? I've heard they keep pointy objects in the stable, and god knows what would happen if he ever got his hands on a hayfork or somethin' like that!"

Priss flinched, and her reaction got Rango to chuckle. 'Oh no... He... knows?' She thought to herself and felt her face turn redder. "He's NOT my boyfriend!" She quietly growled before turning around and walked away.

He grinned at the viper. "You remember when I told you 'bout Tovi and Samara, right?"

Jonas nodded. "Of course! Wish Aj could've met them, though..."

"Well, that's their daughter. Apparently raised by the Crow-Indian Wounded Bird, nearly shot that bastard today, by the way... 'guess she's kinda mad at me for that..."

Jonas' eyes widened. "Really? Tovi's dotter?"

"Yeah, not much of a family resemblance though... Thank god for that!"

"Then, how kan jo be so sure?"

"Oh trust me, I've got a feelin' that you'll find out why!"

Jonas nodded and tilted his head. "Soo, whos teh pretty ladys lucky one then, eh?" He eventually asked with a smug grin.

"Huh? Oh yeah, wanna try an' guess who?"

"Sense when have Aj ben one for gessing games?"

"Why not?!"

"I despise gessing games..."

"C'mon! Make a guess!"

"Rango. Aj'm losing maj patience..."

"Alright then, it's Bentley!"

Jonas flinched in surprise. The one person he had never imagined. He gave Rango a skeptical grimace before bursting out in a roaring laughter. "Den var kul! Good one, Rango! Jo nearly had me there for a sekund!"

"I'm not joking! Why does everyone think I'm joking?!"

"Well, Aj am not buying it!" Jonas shook his head. "Bentley, jo say? Jo ARE aware that he is nuttier than a, what do jo kall them, skwirrel? A lady with any selv respekt at al..."

"Hey, he's not that batshit these days. He's changed a LOT since ya met him last time, y'know!" Rango protested and crossed his arms. "He's not the psychopath from the mountains anymore, ya can actually have normal conversations with him now! Almost at least! He still have the habit of spontaneously burst into laughter ev'ry now an' then. And he just discovered a fondness for bad puns..." He added a grimace to that last sentence.

Jonas grunted and shook his head again. "Aj still dont believe jo!"

"Whatever! Then you an' Hicks can start a club!" Rango mumbled.

"Alright, new topik: That red and black lisard, what did jo kall him?"

"Bad Bill?"

"Ah yes, Bad Bill!" Jonas looked around before looming closer to Rango. "Kan Aj be kompletely onest with jo? Aj'm not sure Aj like the look on that mans face... In fact, Aj dont think Aj like him at al!"

Rango shook his head. "I'm not sure I can turn my back to that fellow either, but he's a hard worker. Despite bein' a leader, he seems pretty used to takin' orders just as often as he gives 'em..." He said with a shrug just as the person in question walked out from the stables and stomped towards the two leaders.

Bad Bill pointed a dirty finger at Rango and growled; "You! I wanna have a word with you!"

Rango grimaced. "Seems like I've gotta go... Anyway, nice talkin' to ya again, partner!"

"Likewise..." Jonas nodded.

Rango returned the nod before leaving to listen to what Bad Bill had on his mind.

Priss buried her face in the palm of her hand and let out a restrained sigh. "Tell me again WHY you're doin' this?" She said to the shaggy hyena, who was hoisting a bag of flour in the air with a rope. He tied one end of the rope around a beam and in the other end, the big, heavy paper bag hovered high over a hatch in the floor, over the stable floor.

They were on the loft of the stable-section. Priss had found Bentley there, busy cooking up some mischief. God knows what he has in store this time...

"Well, ya see that fella there? The ugly one headed this way?" He said and pointed down to a fat gray squirrel with a peg leg. "He really hates my guts, y'know. So I'mma drop this little sucker on his head!" He proudly waved to the bag of flour, dangling near the ceiling.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Why?"

"Duh! Because it's fun, of course!" He said and rolled his eyes. "Alright! When I say, pull that rope and unleash the flour, hehehe!" He laughed and turned his attention back to his unsuspecting victim.

"Hey! I don't want anything to do with this!" Priss protested and flung her hands into the air. "This is YER idea! No wonder that guy down there hates ya!"

"Aww, please?" Bentleys big ears drooped and he turned his face to Priss again. "I'll probably just miss him if I do it myself!"

"Too bad! That's yer problem!"

"Pleeease Prissy?!" He tilted his head to the side.

"NO! And stop lookin' at me like that!"

"Pretty please?"

"ARGH! Fine! Just stop naggin' already!" She walked over to the rope tied around the beam. "I just don't get it, why do this? What do ya hope to gain?"

"Nothin'! I just wanna see his reaction, that's all!" Bentley grinned and glanced down at the squirrel. Priss mumbled something incoherent. "Great! Get set, here he comes!" Bentley was practically bouncing with excitement while Priss rolled her eyes and undid the knot. "Now!"

Priss let go off the rope and the bag of flour dropped and fell through the hatch. It hit the squirrel on top of his head and cracked, the white powder spread like a cloud over the man and his surroundings. He staggered, cursed loudly and looked up. When he spotted the culprit, he started clawing at his belt for his revolver with one hand and wiped some flour out of his worn face.

Bentley on the other hand, started laughing his guts out. He almost doubled over when he peeked down the hatch. "Wes!" He waved at the pissed off, now completely covered in white, squirrel. "Hey, Wes! Or maybe I should say; equinsu odja!" He shouted before continuing the roaring laughter. Priss took a quick glance down the hatch and couldn't help but to laugh too.

Suddenly a bullet whizzed past the two laughing characters. Wes had fired his gun and stared angrily at Bentley. Bentley had been right: this man really did hate his guts.

"Yikes!" The hyena yelped when the bullet missed one of his ears with just a few inches, but then he continued to laugh. Wes was about to fire again when Hicks interfered, drawn by the gunfire.

"Stand down!" He warned. "You shoot one more time an' I'll shoot you, git it?"

Wes turned around with a hiss. "Stay outta this, mongrel!" He spat. "That savage has ridiculed me for tha last time!"

"We've all been there, Wes!" Hicks said with an ensuring voice. "Don't get yerself worked up, you'll only amuse him even more!" He shot a quick, meaning look at Bentley and shook his head. "Besides, that 'savage' is one of our men. Rango won't be happy if you shoot him!"

"As if I'd care!"

"Don't worry, you'll care when Rango finds out that you shot his organizer... Trust me on that one, pal!" Hicks stepped closer to Wes. The squirrel seemed to shrink when the coyote got closer. Wes backed off. "Put yer gun back, pal." The coyote said in an almost whispering tone.  
Wes was hesitating for a while, but he did put his gun back in its holster. He gave Bentley and Priss one last spiteful glance before hopping away on his peg leg. Hicks looked up at the two culprits again and frowned. "And you two! Git down here, NOW!"

Priss turned to Bentley. "And for the record, YOU'RE the one responsible for this!" She chuckled.

Bentley giggled. "But hey! It was sure worth it, right?"

"Heh, yeah... It was kinda fun..." Priss admitted and began to climb down the rickety ladder. "By the way, what does 'equinsu odja' mean?"

"White devil!" Bentley grinned. They looked at each other and bursted out in laughter again.

"Bentley! Priscilla!" Hicks growled and crossed his arms. "I know it was his idea, but I'm blamin' you both for any trouble caused by this lil'... prank!" He looked at them both with an angry wrinkle between his eyebrows.

"Hey! I had NOTHIN' to do with it!" Priss protested. "I'm just an innocent bystander! It's ALL his doin'!"

"Sure! Blame the savage!" Bentley pouted and showed his hands down in his pockets.

Hicks was about to say something when Rango came barging by, forcing the trio to move out of the way to not get bulldozed by the stomping lizard.

"Gee, what's the hurry, chief?" Bentley mumbled.

"It's Coral... Ya haven't seen her, have ya?" He said and stopped, looking at them with a concerned look.

Priss and Bentley shook their heads. "She's ain't here yet?" Hicks frowned.

"No." Rango answered with clenched teeth. "I ain't seen her since we left Dirt... I just hope nothin's happened to her"

Priss cleared her throat to get Rangos attention. "I don't mean to alarm ya or nothin', but..." She said but stopped.

"But what?" Hicks growled.

"I thought I saw Blake chasing after her just when we left..." She said and braced herself to get a yelling at, for not have said anything before or something.

But instead, Rango just nodded stiffly and said: "He's deadmeat."

**So, that was chapter 30 xD! Thanks a lot everyone who has gotten this far with me, and a massive THANKS A TON for those of you who actually takes their time to write a review :D! It's always awesome to read them, even though I don't always have the time to read them at once ^^"... I still haven't read the newest ones yet though...**

**Oh, and one more thing: I'm gonna go to USA with (at the moment pretty sick) mom and one of my brothers tomorrow so don't fret if I don't upload the next chapter in like, three weeks ^^"...**

**Anyway, I hope I'll see y'all in the next chapter :D!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	31. Making Plans

**Finally next chapter :D! So yeah, I was back in 'Murrica last week with my mom and one of my brothers, and it it weren't for school would probably have been there much longer -.-... Meh...**

**But hey, the right guy won the election, eh ;D?  
**

***** Chapter Thirtyone : Making Plans *****

The black and red snake threw herself at the iron bars with a loud hiss. 'You've gotta be kidding with me!' Coral thought to herself and hissed again. That.. That... Damn jerk! Why did he even exist?! That insufferable asshat with his stupid, cocky grin and smooth talking voice! She lunged in anger for the bars separating her from freedom.

If she had only been more swift, he wouldn't have stopped her and caught her. They threw her in the damn jail, where the townspeople had been kept during the nights and were now thinking that she was going to stay in her prison? Hah! Fat chance! She thrashed into the bars again. Sooner or later they would give in, right?

"Hey! Watch it! Ya don't wanna bruise that beautiful body of yers, eh?"

Coral froze. That was his voice! She hated that it still sent shivers down her spine. With an angry look on her face, she turned to face the rattlesnake that appeared in the doorway. Or at least his head.

"Aww, you're still mad at me, ain't ya?" Blake chuckled and tilted his head. "See, I can understand if ya are, but you got me back, remember?"

Coral frowned. No. She didn't remember.

"Ya threw a godamn vase in my head! And I've still got the scar to prove it!" He tilted his hat an inch and revealed a scar, going from the top of his skull down to his left eyebrow. "And it was an invaluable antique too, y'know! From the Ming-dynasty!"

Coral grinned faintly. Oh, he meant that...

"But I'm willing to forget 'bout that! Whaddya say we bury the hatchet and call it a truce, eh sweetie?"

She couldn't believe it! After all he done, he says he's willing to forgive HER?! Jerk! With a loud snort, she turned away from him with her nose proudly pointed skyward.

"Oh, you're givin' me the silent treatment? But it's okay, after all, ya give EVERYONE the silent treatment, whether you want it or not!" He laughed and shook his head. Coral turned back to him with a furious frown.

Sure, it was true. While her head were full of insults and remarks she carefully had picked out for this incredible little twit, she was unfortunately born without the ability to speak her mind. And it infuriated her to know that trying to speak would only end up with undignified wheezes and groans.

"Relax, sweetie! I was just jokin'!" Blake chuckled when he saw her angry face.

Suddenly another voice could be heard from the outside; "Hey, Blake! Ya comin' already?! You KNOW how much Jakey hates to wait!" It was his sisters voice.

"Alright, alright! Don't git yer rattle in a twist!" Blake replied with an annoyed sigh. "Sorry fer cuttin' it so short, sweetie. But I'll be back again, no worries!"

Coral raised an eyebrow and turned her back on him once again. Next time he came back, she would be broken free and ready. And this time she was going to do more than throwing a vase at his thick head... But as soon as he left, she carefully turned around again with a sad frown on her face. Why did he have to be so godamn handsome?

In the saloon, sheriff Rango had gathered some of the townspeople; Beans, Ergyl, Waffles, Wounded Bird and Buford, along with Gus, Woodrow and the three rattlesnakes.

Three hours had passed since the outlaws had retreated and people were still busy running all over the place. One of the first things the Dirtonians did were to seek up and free the four men from Dry Creek. They had been kept in the cellar underneath the bank, where they had been forced to reveal everything the outlaws had wanted to know. They were all dirty and seemed to all have gotten quite the beating, but according to Doc, they would be just fine in a few days. They found and retrieved all the confiscated weapons and now, the chosen bunch were sitting around a table planning for the future and telling sheriff Rango about everything that happened while he was gone.

"So, let's see if I get this straight..." He said, processing all the information he just got. "In the fight that occurred we lost ten men, including major Ambrose. And as soon as I left for the snakes, this 'other Rango' stopped the killing for a few days. But then he started again due to an event..." He paused a bit and everyone turned to Ergyl.

He nervously cleared his throat. "B-but hey, I nearly got him! If it weren't for that Coral..."

Rango waved him off. "It's alright, Ergyl, it doesn't matter. Anyway, this brings me up to this point: Priss. Anyone knows the reason why she..?" Rango didn't need to finish the sentence. The Dirtonians exchanged looks with each other.

"We ain't sure..." Beans said eventually. "She never really told us why, but we believe she's been trying to help us. Or at least, most of us do. He stopped the killing shortly after she joined them, after all!"

Rango let out a relieved sigh. Maybe she still were on their side? "But, why did she seem so... jumpy? And she could've stayed, instead of runnin' away with 'em, couldn't she?" He couldn't help asking. She had seemed a lot out of character when he saw her, and why on Earth would she ride with them?

"She's scared..." Wounded Bird answered before anyone else had opened their mouths.

"Of what?" Rango tilted his head. "Of them?"

"No. Of us..." Wounded Bird slowly shook his head. "And especially of you, sheriff!" Rango stared in disbelief at the Crow in front of him. "She's afraid of how you'll react to all this, and what you'll think. Especially about her. It's no secret that she looks up to you, and that's also why she's so afraid of you right now. She doesn't want you to think badly of her..."

"How do ya know all that?" Gus exclaimed with a raised eyebrow.

Wounded Bird cocked his head at the older jackrabbit. "While we may not share the same blood, I still see her as my daughter. I know every one of her faces, and this is the same face she makes when she knows she's done wrong..."

"But still, there's somethin' ya say that just ain't makin' no god darn sense! If she's so afraid of what people'll say, then why in tarnation would she choose to stay with 'em outlaws?" Gus kept ranting. "Can ya answer me that, indian?"

"No. I cannot..."

"But I think I can!" Everyone turned their attention to Beans. "I bet y'all have noticed that hyena lurkin' 'bout..."

"Well yeah, that fella didn't exactly leave unnoticed, don't y'all agree?" Gus interrupted and crossed his arms. Woodrow hissed at him to be quiet and waved to Beans to keep talking.

Beans nodded and said with a serious tone: "Anyway, I think he's the reason"

Rango tilted his head. "You're not comin' through..."

"Haven't y'all seen it?" Beans turned to the rest of the Dirtonians gathered around the table. Everyone, except Buford, mumbled something incoherent and shook their heads. "There's gotta take a woman to notice, huh?" She rolled her eyes.

"Not necessarily" Buford shook his head. "I've noticed somethin' too. My saloon is the place where they gathered, after all."

"Noticed what?" Rango frowned and switched his eyes from Buford, to Beans and then back again.

"I think Priss might've gotten herself fallin' in love. With the hyena!" Beans said and didn't know whether to smile or frown. Smile because little Priscilla, the town of Dirts little ward, finally found love, or frown because of her choice of man.

"Yeah, an' I reckon he's taken a fancy to her too!" Buford added with a nod.

Rango almost fell off the chair. This wasn't exactly what he had been expecting to hear. "Wha-wha-wha-WHAT?!" He exclaimed with a high pitched voice and a puzzled look on his face. "B-but that can't be? I-it doesn't make any sense?"

Beans took his hand in hers. "Since when have love made any sense?" She asked and smiled when she noticed that Rango blushed.

"Aawww!" Jolene cooed and tilted her head towards Blake. "Isn't this cute?" Blake jerked back, furrowed his brows and mumbled something.

Suddenly Waffles bounced up and waved his little hand in the air in an energetic fashion. "But, if that's true, what'll happen when we kick their butts?" He asked, his large eyes flicked all over the place. "What'll we do with Priss?"

Rango raised his finger and was about to answer his question when Woodrow cut in with his solemn voice; "If ya ride with an outlaw, you'll hang with an outlaw..."

The chameleon dropped what he had on his mind and just stared at Woodrow. "How can you say such a thing?! It's my deputy we're talking about here!" Rango said as soon as he regained his ability to speak and clenched his fist. "Don't forget that she helped saving your life, Sheriff Call! No matter what, she have been and always will be the best deputy out there. And when this is over, and if she wants to herself, she'll go back to being the deputy of Dirt!"

"Don't be stupid!" Woodrow spat and his blue eyes hardened. "She probably chose to be smart and joined the stronger side. If I were you, I'd start searchin' for a new deputy, cuz she ain't comin' back!"

"Oh yeah? Well then, if you were me..." Rango said, gritted his teeth and stood up from the chair. "Then I'd be YOU! And then I would use YOUR body to...!"

"Can we move on to the NEXT subject now, thank YOU!" Jolene interrupted Rango with a loud, annoyed growl and impatiently tapped her rattle against the floor.

Rango nodded with a frown and sat down again. He and Woodrow gave each other angry looks before turning to the next speaker: Beans.

"Now, what do we do with the rest of the townspeople? The ones who can't fight, like the children, the elderly and the sick?" She said.

"Well, I've been feelin' kinda hungry lately..." Blake said with a snicker, which turned into a loud laughter when the critters around the table turned to him with a mixture of horrified, disgusted and angry looks. "Calm down! It's just a joke!"

"If ya don't mind? We can do pretty fine without you and yer wits, dear brother!" Jolene sighed and rolled her eyes. Blake growled and was going to retaliate, but his brother stopped him with an angry hiss.

"Back to the case. We need t'git those people outta here. I've gotta feelin' that this place'll b'come pretty much of a warzone whenever those guys returns" Gus continued. "Miss Beans, ya think they'll all fit on that farm o' yers?"

Beans thought for a while. "Yeah, it'll be a bit crowded, but we should be able to squeeze 'em all in!"

Rango nodded. "Great. They'll have to leave as soon as possible. Waffles, can you go out an' tell people the plan?" He said and turned to the little horned toad sitting on his left.

Waffles tilted his head. "What plan?"

Rango was this close to facepalming. "That the ones unable to fight will be sent to Beans ranch, women, children, old folks y'know!" He explained "Tell 'em that they'll need to leave as soon as possible, so they can only pack the very most essential!" Waffles nodded and jumped down from the chair.

"AND TELL 'EM WHOEVER'S DUMB ENOUGH TO BRING A GODAMN PIANO OR A MIRROR WILL HAVE TO CARRY IT ALONE!" Blake yelled after the little lizard as he scurried out through the doors. "THEY AIN'T GONNA LIVE THERE FOREVER!"

"That was a little unnecessary to point out, don'tcha think klutzo?" Jolene, who had been standing right next to her brother when he shouted, where rubbing head against a wall to stop her ears from ringing.

"Hey, when it comes to inbreds, you can't be too clear sometimes..." He said and earned another angry look from the Dirtonians.

"Well, if ya think we're inbreds..." Ergil said with a chuckle. "Then you should see the family of prairie dogs livin' just outside of..." He got quiet as he exchanged looks with the other people around the table.

"Excellent idea, my friend!" Rango happily exclaimed and bounced up from the chair. "We could definitely need their help! And I don't think that bountyhunter has taken their bats into account!"

He turned back to Ergyl. "Ride out and see if you can convince Balthazar and his family to aid us once more!" Ergyl nodded and left the saloon.

"Considerin' he didn't seemed to be prepared for whatever forced him to change his plans either! I'm startin' to think that he just make things up as he goes!" Jolene nodded in agreement, even though she didn't have any single clue who these prairie dogs were.

Rango froze. He had completely forgotten about that. "Soo, anyone who knows what it was he discovered?" He carefully asked the others, everyone shook their heads.

Jolene made a worried frown. "Whatever it was, we needs to be cautious. Whatever it was he discovered has definitely gotten him spooked..."

"And whatever scares him, scares me!" Blake shuddered.

Jake grinned at his little brother. "Blake, everything scares you!" He chuckled in a mocking tone.

Blake frowned at him. "Ha-ha! Jacob!" He said sarcastically and cocked his head. "But it would've been even funnier if it was true!"  
Jolene chuckled at her two brothers. "Oh, please don't start again, you two!"

**And that was all of this chapter ^^! And I should be done with the next chapter in just a few days :D!**

**Hopefully I'll be able to introduce a bunch of new characters in the next chapter, stay tuned :D!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	32. Always Sneaking Off

**Next chapter, and in this chappie we'll have a special guest appearing :D! You'll find out who in just a few paragraphs ;)!**

**This'll be a pretty long chapter I think. Actually, I'm thinking of making the chapters longer from now on to make the story flow faster ^^**

***** Chapter Thirtytwo : Always Sneaking Off *****

"Let's see..." Sheriff Rango stroked his chin and thoughtfully stomped his foot on the ground while he was making an inventory of present fighters in his head. "Lets see, except for the snakes we've got Wounded Bird, Waffles and Willy. We've got Sergeant Turley, Patrick and Buford. Doc, it's always good to have a doctor 'round. Mr Edwards insisted on staying behind to fight his sons killer. We've got Harry, Slim, Beans... Wait, Beans?!" He squinted his eyes. Yes, it sure was Beans, but what was she doing picking out a rifle? "Oh no!" Rango moaned and ran to the late Mr Black's wagon, where Waffles were handing out their, previously confiscated, weapons to everyone who knew how to shoot, and that was pretty much every single person in the whole town.

Beans stood with a rifle in her hand, inspecting it. When Rango arrived to the wagon, she put down the rifle and picked up a sawed off shotgun instead.

"Howdy sheriff!" Waffles greeted with a nod while Beans quietly weighed the shotgun in her hand and practiced to aim. Rango nodded back to Waffles and put his hand on Beans' shoulder.

"Hey..." Was all she said while she still kept herself busy by going through the weapon. It was a bit rusty, but that was better than the previous rifle and its glitching hammer.

"Hold on there, Beans! Whaddya think you're doin'?" Rango asked sternly and frowned.

"What does it look like? If I'm gonna be stayin' to fight, then I don't wanna be standin' 'ere without a gun!"

"No way! A battleground ain't a place for women!" He shook his head and snatched the shotgun out of her hands.

Beans growled and snatched it back. "I'm stayin' an' that's the end of it!"

"Sir, I-I don't think ya can talk 'er outta this..." Waffles meddled.

"Exactly!" Beans said and stubbornly crossed her arms across her chest. "I wanna git 'em creeps danglin' in their ropes as soon as possible, an' you can't stop me from helpin out in any way I can!"

Rango let out a restrained sigh."But what 'bout the rest, the ones who're gonna seek shelter at yer farm? Don't ya think they might need yer help more?" He said and got a worried frown on his face.

Beans shook her head. "I've already entrusted that title to Mrs Edwards. I bet she'll take more than good care of 'em"

Rango opened his mouth to protest, but changed his mind and closed it again. "B-but what if something happens to you?" He almost whispered at last. This got Beans to sigh and roll her eyes.

"Ya don't have to worry 'bout me, worry 'bout 'em snakes instead. It sounds to me like Jake's gonna rip his siblings apart any minute now!" She said and gave the sheriff a quick smooch on the cheek before leaving with the shotgun in her hands.

Rango smiled faintly to himself and placed his hand where her lips had been touching his cheek just a few seconds ago. He still didn't like the image of her in the middle of the fight, but he still had some time to convince her to leave with the others. He then turned around to see what was going on with the Rattlesnake family this time.

"Blake, you open yer yabberin' mouth again an', I swear on the fires of hell, I'll rip that godamn tongue outta yer mouth an' strangle ya with it!" Jake hissed and scrunched his snout in an angry grimace.

"Hell, hell, hell. What's up with the devils-complex, bro?" Blake frowned and tilted his head. "I git that ya've got an image to keep up, bein' the Grim Reaped n'all, but ya don't have to go all like 'Satans Little Helper' on us!"

"Ya really don't wanna keep that tongue of yers, eh?" Jakes rattle began to shake slightly.

"Boys, calm down!" Jolene giggled and rolled her eyes. "And Jake, you're just makin' it worse for yourself. Ya know he'll never shut up!"

The older brother hissed. "I'm this close to just handin' you idiots over to the bountyhunter right now. Gimmie ONE reason to why I shouldn't!"

"Because ya care 'bout us too much!" Jolene answered and cocked her head with a sly grin. "Don't try to deny it!"

Jake snorted. "Care 'bout ya? Ya know I don't give a rats ass 'bout anyone! But unfortunately I'm cursed with havin' to drag yer sorry butts 'round every single time ya get into trouble!"

"Soo, you don't care 'bout anyone, do ya?" Blake said slyly and glanced at his sister.

Jolenes grin spread even wider. "Are ya sure, big brother? There's ain't someone you're forgettin' 'bout right now?" She innocently batted her eyelashes at him. "Snow white scales, eyes bluer than the sky... Doesn't that ring a bell?"

The pupils in Jakes eyes narrowed to slits and he growled. "N-no! Why would it?" Jolene and Blake gave each other a quick, mischievous look and drew deep breaths.

"ANGY AND JACOB SITTING IN A TREE! KAY-AY-ESS-ESS-AY-EN-GEE!" They sang loud enough for the entire town to hear, before collapsing into a writhing pile; roaring with laughter.

Rango thought he saw something red flash on Jake's cheeks before he lashed out at the two younger snakes with an angry hiss. They yelped and managed to scurry out of the way before he could sink his teeth into either of them. Rango swallowed nervously and decided to intervene.

"H-hey! Excuse me!" He chirped and jumped in between the furious rattlesnake and his two younger siblings, who clearly had a hard time keeping themselves from laughing out loud.

Jakes rattle began to shake as he hovered over the puny chameleon. "What. Is. It?" He growled impatiently.

"Eh, umm..." Rango gulped and carefully turned to Blake and Jolene. "Why don't you two go an' keep an eye on our prisoner instead? I think the bars'll hold, no matter how much she trashes around, but you can never be too sure, right?"

Blake nodded while Jolene grimaced. "Sure, I can go..." She answered. "But are ya sure 'bout Blake?" She shot and angry look at her brother. Blake frowned. "Hasn't he done 'nuff damage already?"

"Hey! I said 'I'm sorry'!" Blake mumbled and pouted.

"Or, I could kill 'em both right now and git it over with!" Jake rumbled.

"Not now, Jake. I need to talk to ya 'bout somethin' first!" Rango said and nodded at the two younger snakes to leave. They both nodded back and slithered away to the jail, still humming the little chant they were singing to piss off their brother. "Now, Jake. I... H-hey, wait!" Rango turned his head around to talk to Jake, just to see the back of the long snake as the slithered away the other direction. Rango ran to catch up with him. "Wait up! I need to ask ya somethin'!"

"Spill it then..." Jake answered without looking at the sheriff.

"Umm, very well..." Rango cleared his throat and kept walking besides the massive snake. "What exactly is it that the bountyhunter want with you? I can see why he'd wanna get back at me, Blake and Jolene, but what have you done? He was a bit unclear 'bout that point..."

"That's none of yer business" Jake answered, adding an end to the short conversation.

"Oh, um well... Then I hope ya don't mind me asking, but who's 'Angy'?" Now Jake stopped and turned around to face Rango. He narrowed his burning red eyes and bared his fangs. He didn't need to say anything, Rango immediately stopped walking and held up his hands. "Sorry, just curious!" He squeaked. With a snort, Jake turned around again and kept slithering away to someplace where he could be left alone, at least until Blake and Jolene grows bored and goes to seek him up.

Meanwhile in the Smugglers Nest...

It was nighttime outside the Nest, and some had already gone to hit the hay. Except for those who had to stand positioned outside at different locations as scouts, if anyone uninvited ever would come strolling up their front porch.

In a secluded room, Jonas' main office to be precise, three figures stood or sat around the desk in the middle of the room, plotting.

Rango leaned his elbows on the table and rubbed his temples with his fingertips. His fin was slouching and and he was mumbling something incoherent.

At least they had all agreed on one thing; number one priority was to get Coral back. But it would be a bonus if they could take out at least one of the snakes. And they had to get the device back as soon as possible too, before the townspeople found it...

"Så, hov are jo going to do it?" Jonas stroked his chin with his tailtip as he asked the lizard sitting across him.

Rango sighed and shook his head. "I'm not sure yet... First we're gonna need to create a diversion, to keep the goons busy while a small group frees her. But I'm not sure where they're keeping her! The jail would be the most logical, but you can never be sure 'bout these wackos..." He frowned and looked up from the table. He turned to Hicks. "Damnit! This is why I need Bentley! Where the heck is he?!"

Hicks shrugged. "I ain't seen him since he and Priss dumped a load of flour on Wes"

"Å herregud..." Jonas sighed, put his tail over his eyes and shook his head.

"Well that's great! Send Priss to find him, she seems to be good at that!" Rango muttred and waved with his hands.

"Errm, there's only one problem..." Hicks sighed as Rango slowly turn around to his second-in-command with an impatient frown. "She's nowhere to be seen either"

Rangos natural response would have been a sly grin and a 'what-did-I-say?' shrug with his eyebrows. But he was so not in the mood right now. He just groaned and let his head fall down hard on the desk, mumbling something about 'godamn kids these days'.

"Are we there yet?" Priss hissed with a restrained sigh as the two shadowy figures climbed up the the steep walls of the canyon. "Ya never told me where we're goin' in the first place!"

"Don't worry, we're almost there! I hope..." Bentley answered, practically bouncing around on the rocks.

"You hope?" Priss cocked an eyebrow. He shrugged and she rolled her eyes.

Earlier that night, he had nearly given her a heart attack when he jumped out from the shadows and announced that he had something to show her. Suspecting it might be a prank, she even now stayed on her toes and watched out for anything that could be set up as a trap. Or bags of flour hovering in the air...

But after casting a worried look at something that turned out to be nothing more than a harmless, dry twig, she noticed that Bentley had disappeared. She stopped climbing when she got to a ledge and looked around. It was dark and cold in the barren canyon, somewhere a coyote howled. Hicks had told her that the only time coyotes howls are when they're searching for someone far away. But he never howl. Ever. According to Bentley though, the main reason coyotes howl at nights is because it's only during the days they can see the cactuses. He honestly deserved that punch on the nose that Hicks gave him.

And Priss would probably punch him right in the throat if he jumped out and scared her now. Cursing his name, she turned her back to the wall and looked from one side to the other. Nothing. She was all alone out there.

Suddenly she felt a hand clasping her shoulder. She shrieked and spun around, almost elbowing Bentley in the face.

"I'm so gonna kill you!" She hissed as the hyena had to put both of his hands over his mouth to stop himself from simply roaring out the laughter building up inside of him. Hidden in the shadows of the great wall, he had grown bored with climbing and waited there to give her a slight scare. Just for fun.

"Sorry!" He giggled with a muffled voice. She growled at him and crossed her arms, facing the other direction to return to the nest. He stopped her by grabbing her hand. "Wait, I'm sorry! C'mon! We're nearly there!" He said and pointed upwards with his other hand. Priss frowned when she saw how close they were to the top.

She turned her head back down to Bentley and growled. "What're ya up to?"

He shrugged. "Nothin'! Just got somethin' I wanna show ya, that's all!" He said with an innocent smirk.

She grumbled something inaudible and kept climbing up. "This better be good!"

"Oh it is!" He said with a snicker and kept bouncing around to reach the top before she did.

He reached another, quite wide ledge near the top and climbed up. He extended his paw to help Priss up. She took it and, with his help, heaved herself over the edge with a restrained moan.

"God, I hate climbin'..." She gasped as she stood on four legs, trying to regain her breath. "Alright! What's that's so important that ya..." She said but interrupted herself when she with a gasp as she saw probably what it was that Bentley wanted to show her.

A short, but tall tunnel, created by weather and wind, with the starry night sky at the end.

She stood up and walked through it to peek at down at the end and saw the Crystal Canyon continue it's winding path. As she looked over the other side, she saw a sight so beautiful that mere words couldn't describe it;

The dry, rocky prairie going on beyond the horizon. She saw the dark blue silhouettes of tall columns of rock, hoodoos, scattered throughout the barren land. The night casting the landscape in a dark blue veil, only lit by the crescent moon and its millions, no billions, of stars. The shadow of a lonely, wild roadrunner crossed the plains in flash and somewhere in the distance, the coyote howled again. Family problems? Cactuses and mesquite bushes appeared as small shadows in the distant.

She couldn't help the little chuckle escaping her lips. She knew the Mojave desert was one of the most beautiful places on Earth, but it had been a long time since she had seen it like this.

"I told ya you'd like it!" Bentley said with a cocky grin.

She shrugged. "It's okay... Nice view though..." She said and felt a tear burning behind her eyelid. She tried to discreetly wipe it off, but he noticed anyway.

"Aaah! No, no, no! You're not sad again are ya?!" He nervously squeaked and his ears drooped.

Priss couldn't help but to chuckle. "No, I'm not sad, silly! It's just that... It's been years since I've been able to just stop and admire the desert like this" The corners of her mouth were slowly tugged up in a smile. "It's so... Beautiful!"

Bentley let out a relieved sigh and his usually ridiculous grin softened into a dreamy smile. "Yeah... It sure is..." He said, but instead of talking about the landscape, he was looking straight at Priss. The moonlight reflecting in her large, round eyes, and it slightly surprised him to see that she still kept her wavy black hair loose. She looked really pretty in the faint moonlight.

She noticed, blushed and turned away. "H-how did you even find this place?" She asked with an involuntary stutter.

"Oh, I dunno. I was just climbin' 'round one day when I found this. We were waitin' here for orders from Rango, y'know, before we sort of, raided yer town and all..." His head drooped slightly and he looked at her from the corner of his eyes. "Sorry 'bout that..." He added.

'Of course...' Priss thought to herself and shook her head, but didn't say anything. It didn't matter now.

Both of them just stood there, watching the night as it shrouded the prairie before them. Priss barely even noticed that Bentleys arm had sneaked away to her shoulders and were now resting across them. She leaned closer and rested her head against him.

"Why are ya doin' this?" She asked quietly. "Why did ya decide to show this for me?" She shot a quick glance at him. He started blushing.

"I-I dunno..." He answered with a nervous chuckle. "Do I really need a reason?"

She smiled faintly. "No, but it would be nice to know why." She smiled faintly and looked up at him again, this time she kept her eyes on his face. He still had a faint redness on his cheeks and he nervously flicked his ears.

"Umm... Well... I-I..I guess I just wanna... I just wanna cheer ya up, y'know... You just left yer town behind after all. It couldn't have been easy..." Priss' eyes widened. She had NOT expected to hear that, especially NOT from Bentley, out of all people. "Which makes me wonder; why DID ya leave? Why leave yer hometown together with some of the lowest creatures on Earth? And DON'T say it's a girl-thing!"

Priss looked away and stared blankly out at the desert. "I dunno... But I couldn't stay either... That look on Rangos face... I mean our sheriff Rango! He just looked so... let down." Priss' lip started to shake. "I-I don't think I'll ever be able to face him again!" She felt more tears burn behind her eyelids, but this time she didn't wipe them away. "And Wounded Bird! He must be so disappointed with me!" As the tears rolled down her cheeks and her voice started to break, Bentley put his arms around her. Hugging her tightly.

"Hey! Cut it out with the cryin' already... You're makin' me sad too!" He said, adding a soft chuckle at the end. "Listen, Prissy. I hate to see ya cry, I really do, so lets make a deal!"

She blinked the tears away and looked up at him with puzzled look. "W-what kind of deal?" She sceptically raised an eyebrow.

"Well, if ya stop with the tears and bein' so gloom all day, then I promise I won't jump out and scare ya no more! Sounds fair to you?"

"Hey, I'm not that gloom all day! Am I?"

"Well, I hardly see ya laugh?"

"What is there to laugh at?"

"Everything! With the right motivation, ya can laugh at ANYTHING!"

Seeing how easily amused he was sometimes, Priss didn't doubt him one second. "Yeah, I believe ya..." She mumbled.

"So, yes or no?" He said and slightly tilted his head.

"To what?"

"The deal! Do we have an agreement?"

She chuckled. "Sure... I guess..."

He hugged her even tighter. "Good!" He grinned, and the grin grew even wider when she put her arms around him and hugged him back. "I..." He started to say, but interrupted himself. "Errmm..." He blushed again when she looked back up at him. He tried to avoid eyecontact. "I, uh, l... I like you!"

Priss flinched and felt her heart skip a beat. "Oh..." Was all she could bring herself to say. "I think I..." She did a mental facepalm. "I think we need t'go back now..."

He let his ears droop again. "Yeah... You're probably right!" He said and tried to snicker. It wasn't very convincing.

She leaned closer and had to stand on her toes to give him a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for showin' me this place" She said with a smile. "'Really appreciate it!"

Bentley blushed faintly and returned the smile. "Anytime!"

The downhill climbing went a lot faster, mainly because Bentley decided to scare Priss one last time by picking her up and combined sliding with running all the way down. It didn't matter that he was as sure on his footing as a mountain goat, Priss still threatened to strangle him when they got down.

"Sorry, just had to! I'll keep my end of the bargain from now on, promise!" He laughed and put her down on the ground again. She gave him an angry look before gradually starting to laugh. That had actually been pretty fun. Even though he was a bit puzzled over her sudden change of mood, Bentley joined in with her laughter.

When they got back to the nest, Rango and Jonas was already waiting for them.

"Are you two gonna make this a habit?" Rango snorted and stomped impatiently with his foot on the ground. "Bentley, we need yer help with these plans, so get yer ass over to the main office PRONTO! Or no dinner for ya!"

Bentleys large ears perked up when he heard the word 'dinner'. "Speakin' of grub, what's on t'days menu?!" As if Rango knew he was going to ask, he threw him an unopened can of beans. Bentley frowned. "Again?" He whined. Priss couldn't help but to chuckle.

"And you, Priss. Caleb here'll show ya to our quarters..." Rango told her and looked around for someone. "Where the heck did the brat go?"

Jonas sighed and slowly shook his head before drawing a deep breath. "CAALEEEEEB!" He yelled at top of his lungs.

The answer came almost immediately; "WHAAAAT?!" And a frowning, big eyed critter poked his head up from behind a bunch of barrels, where he discreetly had been putting apples in his pockets. Priss almost flinched when she saw that he was an aye-aye just like her.

He looked young, probably the same age as Sam, but taller and more scrawny looking with a a big, black tuft of curly hair on his head. And he was practically beaming with contempt.

"Caleb, this'ere Priscilla. Priss, this is Caleb" Rango introduced them short and dully.

"Jo are going to show this lady where Rango and the rest of his men bunkers for the night!" Jonas said and leaned closer to the young aye-aye. "Is that understott?"

Caleb rolled his eyes. "Yes, it is 'understott', old man!" He cast a short, uninterested glance at Priss before cocking an eyebrow at the viper in front of him. "But why do I have to do it?"

"Or else jo and that monster vill have to find another refuge! Stopp questioning maj orders!" Jonas replied with a hiss.

"Fine!" Caleb mumbled. "Who would've thought that I signed up to be transporting whores up and down..." Priss merely snorted at the taunt, but Bentley flattened his ears against his neck and growled. Caleb grinned. "Howdy B. Didn't see ya there! What are ya doin' here, freak?"

"What I'm doin' here? Well, I was gonna start with yer mot..."

"Bentley, the office!" Rangos finger lashed out, pointing up to the stone stairs. Bentley snorted but quietly obeyed, leaving for the stairs. But not after giving Priss a quick hug. Rango raised a sly eyebrow at Jonas, who responded by rolling his eyes.

"And what are ya waitin' for? Nicer weather? Good luck, no sunshine will ever shine down here! C'mon!" Caleb scowled at Priss and started walking the opposite direction. Priss had to stop and count to ten to keep herself from grabbing the closest rock she could find and smash it in his head. This guy was just obnoxious! Seriously, not even Bentley seemed to like him!

Rango and Jonas stood on the same spot for a while.

"Wow, why have I got this feelin' that Priss might end this guys life with her own bare hands one day?" Rango chuckled.

Jonas frowned. "Aj wish she doesn't. That... Thing! Is going to be completely unkontrollabel if the kid dies..." He answered and grimaced.

"So is Bentley, if somethin' were to happen to Priss..." Rango turned his head slightly and looked at the small snake from the corner of his eyes. "Y'saw the way he reacted when Caleb called her a whore? He and Caleb have had their little disputes every now and then, but I've never heard him growl like that before!" He faced forward again when Jonas didn't answer. "Y'know, I'm thinkin' of leaving her behind when we leave to free Coral."

This time it was Jonas' head that turned to the side. "Why?" He frowned.

"I need to 100% sure that the men around me will shoot to kill, if necessary. I don't think I wanna force her to do that to her ol' folks."

"Jo care to much"

"That's true. Sad, but true..." Rango said and shook his head. "Anyway, I'd like you to keep an extra eye on yer men by then. I know it's hard to get 50 guys to behave like civilized people, so I'm not asking that. But try to keep the worst troublemakers occupied an' away from her, 'kay?"

"Sure, I'll see what I can do!"

"Much obliged! Oh, an' ya still got the Gajerra brothers workin' for ya, haven't ya?"

"Unfortunately, ja"

"... Great... Just great..."

**Somehow, I feel like shooting myself after writing this o.O... Not sure why though...**

**Anyway, I'm sure some of you recognized the description and the name "Angy". If you didn't then I highly suggest that you go and read a story called "Midsummer Dream" (and it's two one-shots prequels) by StonecoldAphrodite :D! I've had a scene in my head for a long time in which Jolene and Blake humiliates Jake by telling the others about his love life. And I just thought it would be hilarious to mix in someone "from the outside" xD! Plus Angy is really beautiful and would definitely be the kind of girl Jakey is interested in xD!  
Anyway, I don't own Angy (or Aphrodite, which is her full name), she belongs entirely to my friend StonecoldAphrodite, and she's got absolutely nothing to do with this story, neither have this story anything to do with her ;)... Please don't maul me D:!**

**And not sure if I meant for the part with Priss and Bentley to be so... cute? Maybe it's a bit too much :/? Lol, still not sure what the hell I'm writing, but I'm actually starting to really love those two together xD! And it's always an advantage if the author actually likes what she writes, lol xD!**

**Anyway, not sure when the next chappie comes, but I guess I'll be seeing everyone then xD!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	33. Stupid little brat!

**So, back again for more, eh :D?**

**Awesome!**

**Since I didn't get to introduce all the characters I wanted to introduce in the last chapter, so I'm making a new try here :P! However, I did get to squeeze in Caleb at the end, and YES! He's a foulmouthed little asshole, but he's actually got a reason for it ;). Unlike Blake, who's an asshole just for fun :P! And viewers discretion is advised, because that little brat has a vocabulary equal to that of an Alabama redneck!**

***** Chapter Thirtythree : Stupid Little Brat! *****

"Gee, I can't believe it! I'm the only one who can control a hundred kilos raw muscle-jock with a pea brain and one helluva temper, and what do they put me to do? Clean corridors and act pimp" Caleb mumbled and cast an accusing look at Priss.

She gritted her teeth and clenched her fist. She had been quiet all this time, listening to his taunts and complaints and her patience had run out a long time ago. She didn't know how much longer she could endure before she kicks him to the floor.

"I mean really, who do they think I am? Their busboy?" He turned around to Priss again. "And aren't you a cheerful one? Cat got yer tongue? But I guess that's good, guys hate it when wenches blabber on like there's no tomorrow!" That's it.

In a blur, she raised her fist and jammed it straight in his smug face. Surprised, he staggered back and put his hand over his nose. "What the hell? I'm bleeding! Ya crazy cu...!" He didn't get to finish the sentence before another one of Priss' fists came from the side, socking him to the ground. He landed on his stomach and before he registered what happened, Priss was kneeling on his back. Grabbing both of his arms and pressed them down between his shoulders. He yelped, both in pain and surprise. Sure, he was bigger than what she was, but she had a lot of experience with wrestling down intransigent and sometimes violent drunks.

"Get offa me, ya wench!" He tried to writhe loose, but his movements only caused more pressure on his shoulders and he winced in pain.

"Listen, ya little jerk! You DON'T wanna piss me off!" She hissed and put more weight down on his arms, causing him to wince again.

"And you DON'T wanna piss me off either, lady! Trust me, you've got NO IDEA who you're messin' with!"

"I know perfectly WELL who I'm messin' with: a stupid little impudent BRAT!"

"An' you are a sadistic bitch, now GET THE FUCK OFF!"

"Do ya really kiss yer mother with that foul mouth o' yers?"

"No, but yers don't seem to mind it!"

"Haha, very cute! Listen, I'm gonna let ya go, BUT only if you apologize!"

"Screw you bitch!"

"Wrong answer!"

People were drawn to the ruckus and soon a small crowd had been formed around the two fighting aye-ayes. There were surprisingly many mixed emotions in the crowd: all from cheering and amused to annoyed and even horrified.

"Lemme go NOW and I promise yer death will be swift!"

Priss growled and pushed his arms further up, the little jerk yelped in pain. "You're just makin' this harder on yerself, kid! I can do this all day!"

"Alright, alright! I'm sorry! Just let me go, ya fatass whore!"

"... Really? Ya apologized just to insult me again? I think I might've hit ya a bit too hard! Try again!"

"FINE! I'M SORRY!" He yelled. "I'm so fucking sorry! Just let me go PLEASE!"

Priss grinned triumphantly to herself. She jumped off his back and got up on her feet just as he crawled up into a sitting position and massaged his sore shoulders. His whole front side was dirty and covered with dust and he had a small trail of blood escaping his left nostril.

"You are a fucking lunatic, y'know that?!" He hissed. "You and B really are perfect for each other, aren't ya? A match made in hell!"

She felt her cheeks turn red and lifted her fist to punch Caleb in the face a third time. He flinched at first, but then noticed that she wasn't gonna punch him after all and mockingly grinned at her. "Chicken?"

"DON'T test me!"

"Whatever..." He stood up and brushed the dust off. He then pointed down the same direction they had been heading. Probably northwest, but it was tricky to tell underground. "Just go down that way an' you'll get to a big round room, a communion room or somethin', hell I dunno. But yer friends should be there." He wiped the blood from his nose. "And don't you EVER get within a two meter radius from me, capische?"

"That depends on how big of a jerk ya are!" Priss stubbornly crossed her arms. The other aye-aye snorted and turned to the crowd.

"And what're y'all glaring at? Vamoose! Get outta here before I fetch the big guy!" He warned and that seemed to have effect since the pack scattered almost as fast as they had gathered.

"And who's this 'big guy' you're always talkin' 'bout? Yer imaginary friend?"

Caleb grinned menacingly at her. "Oh no, he's very real! And if ya just stay the fuck away from me and perhaps ya won't have to meet him, bitch!"

"Asshole!"

"Wench!"

"Loser!"

And with that last exchange of formalities, the two aye-ayes departed their separate ways. Even though Priss doubted it was the right way Caleb had pointed out, she soon found the familiar bunch of outlaws. And she also found out that rumors spread faster in the Nest than wildfire's on a dry grassland.

The room her friends were hanging around in was large and chiseled out in a round shape. There were three large tables forming a triangle around a stove in the middle. The stove was connected to a thick pipe leading up and into the roof. Probably the chimney, even though Priss hadn't seen anywhere on the outside where smoke would exit. Scrange, Sam and the brothers were all gathered in here. Hicks were probably with Rango and the others.

"Are you absolutely bonkers?" Scrange exclaimed when Priss walked into the room.

She turned to the little gray rat sitting on the floor, as close to the stove as he could. "What?" She asked and raised an eyebrow.

"Ya do know that not even Jonas' men messes with Caleb, right?" Flitch raised an eyebrow and handed her a plate with food as she passed.

"So what?" She rolled her eyes and flung herself down on an empty armchair with her food. "What can he do? He ain't more than a rude lil' brat! He had it comin'!" She said stubbornly and began to stuff herself with the slightly overcooked beans.

Fledge rambled something in Spanish and looked at his brother with raised eyebrows, meaning for him to translate. Flitch sighed. "Fine! He might be a harmless lil' kid, but his friend sure ain't!"

"Ya mean 'the big guy' that he always was talkin' 'bout?" Priss paused her dinner and sceptically cocked her head. "He was talkin' an awful lot 'bout him, talkin' big! Who is he anyway, and does he even exist?"

"None of us has seen IT ourselves, although I think Rango has" Scrange said. "However Jonas' men have all seen it, and they've told us it's a monster! A demon freshly spawned from hell! Big as a house, stronger than a buffalo and more bloodthirsty than an angered rattlesnake!" He shivered. "I don't think I WANT to see it myself at all!"

"They really told you all that?" She chuckled.

The little rat nodded furiously. "Yeah! And we all better be sleeping lightly tonight, or Caleb's monster might crush us all in our sleep!" He whimpered and nervously looked around.

"Don't worry!I don't think it will, but ya better be careful from now on, Priss." Flitch solemnly told her. "I don't think Caleb appreciated that lil' stunt ya pulled on him there!"

Priss put her empty plate to the side and crossed her arms. "I ain't afraid of some brat, neither am I of his friend! If he didn't like bein' put in place, then he should just come right to me an' tell it to my face! Instead of hidin' behind some monster!" She said and frowned. "Besides, I refuse to believe that the 'monsterguy' is real until I've seen it with my own eyes!"

"Well, if the story circulating the Nest is true, then I reckon you'll be seein' the monster sooner than ya think!" Rangos sudden voice made Priss jump in surprise. The five heads all turned to the three men entering their room. First came Rango and Hicks, with Bentley trailing behind them.

Priss frowned, something was different about him. He seemed both tired and wary at the same time. His shoulders were slouching and his eyelids seemed heavy, and yet he would cast a suspicious look over his shoulder every now and then, as if he was worried that they were being followed. He even ignored the plate Flitch held out for him. He just walked over to the closest wall and slouched down with his back against the cool rock.

Bentley just said no to food. Something was definitely wrong!

"Bentley?" As he heard Priss say his name, he sleepily turned his head at her and flicked one of his ears.

He chuckled faint 'hey!'.

"Don't ya worry 'bout him! He just used his brain a bit more than he's used to, that's all! That and he's a bit paranoid after hearin' what ya did to Caleb." Rango said with a shrug. He sat down at one of the tables and waved for the others to joined him. "Gather'up here everyone, we've finally got a plan for tomorrow!" Even Sam moved from his corner to listen. Rango waited for everyone, except Bentley, to get seated before explaining the plan; "Alright, tomorrow we'll leave early, b'fore dawn. The main objective is to free Coral, but if anyone gets a clear sight of the snakes, feel free to shoot! First of all I'll let ya now that Thunder Wing is gonna help us out by keepin' Jake off our backs!" An approving mumble spread in the room, except for Priss and Sam who frowned at Rango in a puzzled look. "A bird. A BIG bird, ya'll get to meet him tomorrow. He just returned here from his home so he's been dozin' off all day. We'll split up into two squads: Hicks, the brothers an' I will ride on ahead an' create a diversion. We'll probably use the good ol' 'shoot n' holler' strategy."He paused when he saw Priss' worried face. "Don't worry, we'll try to not kill anyone! Anyway, Bentley an Scrange will sneak 'round the town durin' the ruckus an' locate Coral. She'll probably be in the jail. While Sam cover their backs."

"But...!" Sam protested. "Ya promised me Blake! Ya said ya would let ME take him down!"

"And we won't try n' shoot him! But if he's dumb 'nuff to jump straight into the firing range of either me or the others, then it's not our fault if he dies!" Hicks answered with a stern frown. Sam clenched his jaw together and stared down at the table. He wasn't entirely satisfied with the plan.

"What 'bout me?" Priss asked. "What'll I do?"

Rango seemed to be hesitating. "I'm sorry, Priss. But ya won't be comin' along!" He said. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I don't know if I can trust ya tomorrow or not, and I need to be absolutely certain that my men will be able to fire to kill, if necessary. Besides, I don't wanna live with the guilt that I made ya kill yer ol' friends." Priss snorted and crossed her arms. Although he was right, she could help but to feel a bit hurt. And the thought of having to draw her gun at sheriff Rango, Wounded Bird, Waffles or anyone else from Dirt, didn't sound all too tempting. "Besides, I've got an important mission for ya here in the Nest" He added, which got Priss' ears to perk up.

"Really? What kind of mission?" She asked curiously.

"Espionage!" Rango answered with a smirk. He leaned over the table and whispered; "I'll be totally frank here, I really don't trust any Jonas' men. Not one bit. But he won't listen to me, that stubborn idiot! And lately, they've been actin'... strange. The whole bunch! I've seen 'em whisperin' amongst themselves, only to silence an' scatter when I git too close. I think they might be plottin' somethin'. I don't know what, but that is what I want YOU to find out!"

"Me?" Priss blinked. Her? A spy? This could get interesting!

"Yes, you! However, it's very important for ya NOT to attract too much attention!" He added in a warning tone.

"Yeah I know, it's only one of the basic things with bein' a spy!" She mumbled and rolled her eyes.

"That wasn't what I meant." The serious tone in his voice made Priss flinch.

"Huh?"

"Lemme put it like this; there's fifty-something men working here in the Nest with all sorts of different things. And I reckon there has been at least three months since anyone of 'em last saw a woman."

"Oh..." Priss felt her stomach turn. She had never thought of that before, and it made her feel very uneasy.

"Are ya sure she can't come with us anyway?" Bentley asked with a worried frown as he sat with his legs crossed on the floor.

"Don't worry 'bout me!" Priss turned around on the chair she was sitting on. "I'm not exactly helpless, y'know. Hopefully they all saw what happened to Caleb when he was bein' a jerk and can figure out on their own what would happen if they as much as looks at me funny!" She said with a reassuring wink. Even though Bentley seemed to buy it, she wasn't sure if she herself believed what she just said.

A grin appeared on Rangos lips for a few seconds. But then it vanished again, just as fast as it had appeared. "And one more thing; since a few years back, Jonas has had the Gajerra brothers workin' for him. I suppose you've heard 'bout them, haven't ya?"

Priss nodded. Of course she had heard about the Gajerras, even if she sometimes wished she hadn't. The Gajerra brothers, Pancho and Francisco, were notorious outlaws from Mexico. Guilty of pretty much everything; robbery, theft, desertion, pouching, scalp-trading, rape, murder, arson etc. You name it, they've done it. Possibly even to their own mother. "But, why would he have people like THEM workin' for him?!" Priss frowned.

"He wants people who are efficient an', considerin' his line of profession, doesn't ask questions." Rango answered almost immediately. "An' the reason the Gajerra brothers joined him was so that they could get away from us." He did a small nod to the rest of the gang gathered in the room. "We've been on their tails for a long, long time! At least five, six years, or whaddya say, Hicks?"

"Yeah, that sounds 'bout right..." The coyote answered with a shrug.

"But ya shouldn't have to worry too much 'bout 'em tomorrow, as Jonas said that he'll send 'em out on a mission in the outside world for the day." Rango cocked his head at Priss, who did a sigh of relief on the inside. "Although, you should still keep yourself outta trouble as much as possible, and please don't do anythin' like wrestlin' down the most feared kid in the Nest and force him to apologize." The faint grin appeared on his face again.

"That all depends if I see the lil' rat tomorrow or not. No offense, Scrange!"

"Non taken..."

"Ya should know that we met 'em on our way here. Pancho said that they saw yer lil' performance..." Hicks added and grimaced. "And they asked us to tell ya that they're impressed!"

"I hate those two..." Bentley said and shook his head. "They're no fun!" He pouted and crossed his arms, leaning back to the wall.

"He once tried to glue their hats to their heads" Rango chuckled to Priss. "Needless to say, they didn't appreciate the lil' prank, and he ended up with several broken ribs and one helluva black-eye! Jonas' had to pay 'em both extra so they wouldn't cut off his ears too!" Bentley scowled and raised his hands up to his ears and pulled them down. "At least ya know not to mess with 'em Gajerra brothers no more, ya looked like ya put yer head in the meatgrinder again!"

"I was just kiddin'!" He mumbled and looked around, as if they were going to appear in the room. "They're even worse than Caleb! And Caleb NEVER falls for any of my pranks!" He let his ears go and threw out his arms. "Do ya have any idea how frustratin' that is?! No matter what I do, he's always at least one step ahead! I can't stand him!"

Priss couldn't help the chuckle at him. He looked so troubled. "I can't stand him either. Ya know what? Next time I'll let ya know when I plan on pinning him to the ground, maybe you could be there an' throw a pie in his face or somethin'?" She said, not even bothering to try and hide the giggle. He nodded frantically.

"Not just a pie, I'll throw a whole godarn bakery in his face!" He mashed his fist into his palm to add emphasis. "First somethin' small, like the cookies an' the biscuits. Then I'll bombard him with somethin' bigger, like pastries! And then comes the pies, an' I'll finish off by dumpin' a frickin' cake on his sorry ass!"

Rango sighed and shook his head. "Bentley, go to bed. You're way too tired, ya ain't thinkin' straight!"

"Who are you? My mama?"

"No, but I'm the one keepin' ya alive! There's fifty men out there, and ya've managed to piss off every single one 'em at least once! They'll lynch ya as soon as they git an opportunity, y'know!"

"I have? All of them? Damn, I'm good!"

Rango facepalmed. "As I said, we're leavin' before dawn. We ALL better get some shuteye!" He said and looked at his men. They all looked worn out. They could use more than a few hours of sleep. WAY more than a few hours.

**Heheheee, I just can't WAIT 'til the REALLY good part comes :D!**

**Wow, I've noticed how much I've been forced to change the ending since I decided to let Jonas into the party xD. I'm not giving anything away though ;P!**

**I'll start writing the new chapter in jiffy, gotta do some homework first though -.-...**

**Delilah OUT!**


	34. Gotta tell her

**Chapter 34 already... I've got an insane writers block drying up my brain o_o... I hate writers block...**

**Just a little warning here in the beginning, because it's INCREDIBLY sappy -.-... Sorry 'bout that, didn't mean for Bentley to get so... mushy... **

**Oh and it's a pretty extremely mammoth sized chapter again xD!**

***** Chapter Thirtyfour : Gotta tell her... *****

It was nighttime.

The big, round room would've been pitch black if it weren't for the three small lanterns, placed one and one on the tables around the stove. Some coal were still glowing in the black furnace, giving off a small amount of heat into the room. A cacophony of loud snoring was echoing around, keeping Priss awake.

"Ugh, men!" She groaned and put her hat over her face, trying to block out the noise.

All equipment had been hastily left behind in Dirt, but at least Jonas had been able to provide blankets for them. At least something. Everyone was sleeping scattered around the com. room. Everyone except Rango, that is. He had left to spend the night in the stable, near Arrow.

Priss gritted her teeth as she was trying to block out the sound of her snoring companions. She was sleeping a bit further away from the others. A girl needs her privacy after all! Suddenly she heard a whimper somewhere in the room. She moved her hat from her eyes just in time to see Bentley jolt awake with a high pitched yelp. He tensed up and looked around, to make sure he didn't wake someone else up. When he saw that everyone kept snoozing on as before, he sighed and buried his face in his hands. Mumbling in an unknown language, he got up, walked over to one of the tables and sat down heavily on one of the chairs.

Priss slowly rose to a sitting position as he leaned over the table and buried his head in his arms. There he sat completely still, not moving, until Priss got up and sat down next to him. "Can't sleep huh?" She asked. He jumped in surprise, nearly falling off the chair.

"Oh, h-hey! G'mornin'!" He said nervously. "Or maybe it's still goodnight? I have no idea what time it is..."

"Me neither..." She chuckled.

They were both quiet, not knowing what to say. The silence were only interrupted by the loud snores from the rest of the gang.

"So... Nightmares again?" Priss asked eventually and tilted her head. They had to whisper to not risk waking the others up.

Bentley grinned widely. "What? W-what makes ya say that?! Nope! N-nah, no worries here!" He laughed nervously. Priss raised a skeptical eyebrow at him. His grin faded away and and lowered his head. "Yeah... D-did I wake ya up?" He said and turned his eyes away, looking at a spot on the floor.

She shook her head and smiled. "Nah, I just couldn't sleep with all these guys snorin' like there's no t'morrow!"

He chuckled. "Well, it takes some time to get use to them..."

"That is, IF I ever get the time to get use to 'em..." She replied with a dull whisper and followed a pattern in the old, worn out wooden table with her finger.

"Of course ya will!" He turned to her and tried to not shout it out. "I mean, ya'll stay with us, right?" He sounded a bit worried. She didn't answer. "Y-ya don't wanna stay with us, d-do ya?" His ears drooped on his already low hung head. Making him look very small... and strange.

She sighed. She had thought about it for a long time. Doubting that she would stay with these guys that much longer. Not a single cell in her body was that of an outlaws. Besides, she never wanted to leave Dirt in the first place. Why she had gone with them anyway was puzzling her. But one thing she was sure of: living the life of an outlaw was nothing for her! She felt more at home on the other side of the law, the right side! "Ya want me to be honest?" She could leave the gang. Just ride away when nobody was looking. Rango didn't have anything to hold against her anymore; her town was safe with the sheriff now. Sure, she maybe couldn't return to Dirt, but she could probably start over somewhere else? Hopefully they've still got some gold left in California...

"Will the truth hurt?"

She frowned and turned her head to him. He looked sad. Too sad! He had wrapped his arms around himself and his head were only a few inches above the table. He didn't look like himself at all! "Nevermind..." She shook her head again. "I'm sorry Bentley... I didn't mean to make ya so..."

"It's alright, it's not you..." He started having a staredown with the table. "It's the nightmares..." He whispered almost inaudible.

"Soo... You wanna talk 'bout 'em or somethin'?" She started playing around with the patterns in the darkened wood.

At first it seemed as if he was going to shake his head and refuse. It actually surprised Priss a little when he started talking:

"They always start the same way; I get to relieve the moment when I met my bestest friend for the first time..."

"Scrange?"

"Nah, her name was Cornelia. Or is? I don't even know if Corny's alive anymore... Hehe, Corny... She really hated that nickname!" He put his hands on the table, palms down. "Next person I see..." He paused and chuckled quietly. "Next person I see is my father."

Priss tilted her head. "Yer father?"

"Yeah!" He nodded and a faint smile appeared on his face, making him look a bit like himself again. "He reminds me to always stay smilin', no matter what happens! Nobody can breaks ya down if ya always look at things at the bright side! If ya look at the cup half-full! He tells me there's two ways to get through life, either by laughin' or cryin'" He laughed again. "And he would always pick laughin' over cryin'! Cryin' gives ya such a headache, y'know!"

Priss couldn't help the little smile that spread on her face. "Well, that ain't so bad now, is it?"

"Yeah, but then IT comes... The gunshot..." His voice got a solemn tone again and the smile vanished from his face. "One gunshot is all it takes. One gunshot and my father lies there on the ground. Dead... Dead as a doornail... All b'cause of me!"

"Oh... I-I'm sorry..." Was all Priss could say as she felt her face turn paler. "B-but, it can't have been yer fault, can it?"

"Yes it was!" He exclaimed and bit his lip. "I-I know I was just a kid, but I can't stop askin' myself: why was I so stupid?!" He blinked, trying to suppress the tears that tried to force their way out. Don't cry. Mustn't cry! "T-they said they had seen the Spotted Ones in our lands. And they had been seen with the Strangers. Strangers from the other side of the big water..." A single tear broke through. Damn! "I-I was just so curious... I'd never seen the Strangers before, and the only Spotted One I've seen was my grandma. Sure, dad was half-spotted, but that didn't count! So, I ran away one night. M-my sister followed me, she tried to stop me..." He started shaking his head. "I should've listened to her... I should have listened to the adults!"

"Bentley?" Priss asked with a worried frown. She moved her chair closer and put a hand on his arm. "A-are ya okay?" 'Really? Ya couldn't come up with a dumber question than that?' She added to herself in her mind.

"I-I thought we could sneak up on 'em from the trees, but... But they sneaked up on us first. They captured us and took us to the Strangers. Father came to save us, but..." He clenched his eyes shut. A second tear escaped. "But they caught him too. And they...The Strangers... They shot him! I saw it... And now I'll have to spend the rest of my life dreamin' 'bout it..." Another tear rolled down his face. Oh, to heck with it. Just let 'em come...

"Bentley, I... I-I didn't know..."

"But it's so weird... I remember that day like it just happened yesterday, but father... I-I can't remember his name.. Only his face... On the other hand, I hardly remember anyones names anymore! My father, my sister, aunt, uncle, grandma..." He buried his face in his hands. "They're all gone... I've forgotten 'em all! Can't even remember most of theirs faces! Hell, I-I can't even remember what my OWN name was!"

"Stop it, Bentley!" Priss said, sounding more stern that she had intended.

But he didn't stop. Instead he just buried his face in his arms again. "He was wrong... They CAN break ya, even if ya look at the cup half-full!" His muffled voice sounded way too close to a sob.

Priss sighed and moved the chair as close to his as she could, threw an arm around him and leaned her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry... I really am! I shouldn't have brought it up, I-I'm sorry!" She said, still trying to keep her voice down to avoid awaking someone. Luckily, it sounded like they all were still snoozing away. At least, that's what she was hoping.

"What're ya talkin' 'bout? I brought it up..." He answered, still not lifting his head from his arms on the table.

"But I..." She interrupted herself. There was no use in arguing with him. Especially not now...

Wait, a sister huh? She couldn't help the curiosity building up inside. He had never mentioned a sister before, had he? "Errm, I mean, what 'bout yer sister? Where's she now?"

"How should I know?" He shrugged, making Priss' head rise and fall with his shoulder. "She didn't come with me. They split us up and I haven't seen her since then..."

"What 'bout Corny?"

"I said I don't know! Her father sent her away somewhere, how could I know where? It's not like they wanted to tell me! I wasn't the most popular kid on the block, exactly. If he could've, I bet that fat peckerwood would've much rather have sold me off instead!" He hissed, Priss flinched in surprise to his angry response. Bentley? Aggressive? "But who'd want a troublemaker who constantly got whipped to shreds since he's too frickin' dumb to keep his mouth shut and just work like ev'ryone else, and on top of it all: is educated?! No one, that's who!" He dug his nails into the table. "And when they found out Corny and I were friends ... Oh shit! The damn savage talked to the boss' daughter! I bet he's out to hurt her! 'Cause that's what savages do best, besides workin' their butts off: they are all dumb creatures who's only good for...!" Suddenly he stopped ranting. Priss let out a relieved sigh. Good thing too, he was getting scary. He tilted his head so he looked at her with one eye. His crimson eye, partially covered by his thick hair, was swimming with tears. She got a lump in her throat by just seeing him like this. She wasn't used to it, and she had no plans on getting used to it either! "I-I'm sorry, Prissy! Didn't mean to... I'm not...!"

"No, no, it's alright!" She tried to smile and shook her head. "Blowin' off some steam every once in a while is good! Trust me, I know!"

But once again he refused to listen. He quickly wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer. "I-I didn't mean to get mad at ya, Prissy! Don't... I... I'm not...!" He whimpered and hugged her tighter, like she was going to disappear at any moment.

"Will ya knock it off already? I told you it's okay, ya big goof!" She chuckled. "Besides, can I tell ya somethin'?" She pushed herself away far enough to look him in the face. Feeling ashamed, he tried to look away, but she put a hand on his cheek and forced his head to turn back. "I think it's REALLY unfair that I can't be sad while it's okay for you to bawl! Aren't ya the one who's been nagging on me for days to cheer up and stop frownin'?" He bit his lip and tried to look away again. "I'm talkin' to ya, mister!" She said and turned his face back to her. "Don't think for one second that I enjoy sein' ya cry an' be all sad either!"

"Sorry..."

"What? What's up with the apology? STOP apologizin' for every little thing!" She moaned and rolled her eyes. "What're ya, Canadian?"

He got a puzzled look on his face, before closing his eyes and started chuckling. The chuckle evolved into a laughter that he had to put a lot of effort into stifling. "Canadian? Gotta remember that one!" He laughed and opened his eyes again and saw her smiling back at him.

"See? That's more like the Bentley I know!" She said and chuckled as he blushed again. "I don't think yer dad would want'cha to be sad either! He came with a pretty good advice there, huh?"

"He always did..." He smiled weakly and tightened the hug again.

"Oh, lemme guess; you're a snake now?" Priss rolled her eyes again when she got pulled even closer to him, already forced to be sitting on the edge of her chair.

"I... I don't wanna leave ya behind when we leave to get Coral back!" He suddenly blurted out and leaned his head against hers. She sighed. Here we go again! "There were somethin' Hicks didn't tell ya 'bout when we ran into the Gajerra brothers..."

This actually got Priss'attention. "Huh?"

"I- I don't wanna scare ya, but they weren't just impressed with ya... They said they looked forward to meet ya, and..." He growled silently and paused. He moved one of his hands up to her overarm and pressed her closer to him, as if to protect her from something."And... And possibly to spend some time alone with ya..." He almost hissed it out through his clenched teeth. "... Then they laughed... I... I've never wanted to kill anyone before, but back then... I just wanted to rip 'em apart right there and then!"

Her heart skipped a beat and she bit her lip as she felt a twinge of fear. That would explain why he acted so edgy earlier. "L-listen..." She said and tried to make her voice sound steady. "Ya KNOW ya don't have to worry 'bout me!" She managed to squirm out from his arms. "Ya heard what Rango said; Jonas'll send 'em out on a mission the first thing in the mornin'! I bet you guys'll be back before they return! And besides, look at me! Do I look like I need someone to protect me? I've handled badguys before, it's my job actually! Why would this time be any different?" 'Except this time I'm completely alone and basically unarmed against fifty men, a brat and his imaginary friend and the two most ruthless brothers in the history of outlaws...' His eyes met hers for a second before they moved back to the floor.

"Ya ain't even got a gun..." He mumbled.

She shrugged. "I've got a knife, that's somethin' at least!"

He frowned and squeezed her hand. "... Ya promise you'll be okay?"

She suddenly remembered something he said when promising Hicks never to switch the signs on the toilets again. "Cross mah heart an' 'ope t'fly, stick a cupcake in mah 'aye!" She grinned, hoping one of his own quotes would cheer him up, adding the widest accent she could do. He burst out laughing. Success! She just had to laugh too. "Just cheer up already, okay? It seriously creeps me out to see ya so gloomy!"

He smiled and glanced at the lantern placed on the table. The little flame danced inside its protecting veil of glass, casting a faint, yellow light on everything around. He took a deep breath, braced himself to say something. "I... " He stopped himself. He just couldn't say it. What if she didn't like him, the way her liked her? What if he told her and she started hating him instead? They weren't the same, after all. He looked away from the lantern, looked at her instead. She tilted her head and had raised an asking eyebrow. "... Never mind, it's nothin'..." He said and let go of her hand. He turned to the table again and rested his elbows on the worn surface. She shook her head and did the same. He looked at her from the corner of his eyes. He HAS to say it someday, why not just say it today and get it over with? He drew a deep breath once again.

"Hey, I need to tell ya somethin'...!" Both of them said at the same time. An awkward silence fell between them.

"So, umm, what was it you're gonna say?"

"N-no, no! Go ahead, ladies first!"

Priss nodded. "Do ya remember last night? " She blushed and did a mental facepalm. 'Well, this wasn't very well thought-through was it now, genius?' "That night we... errm... kissed?"

Bentley stifled a chuckle as even he couldn't help but to blush slightly. Was she kidding? No way he'd forget that night! "Yeah..." He shrugged. "Why?"

Now she did a mental slam-the-head-on-the-table. 'Why did you have to bring that up, smartass?' "N-nah... Nothin', r-really... I-I just..." She stuttered nervously and played around with a strand of hair. "I don't even know why I brought that up, sorry. What did ya wanna say?"

"Huh? Oh, that... T-that's not important... I guess I can tell ya another day!" He restlessly dragged a finger along a scratch in the table, making it bigger.

"Ookay...I..." She said and got up from the chair. "I should just get back to bed, tryin'a get some shuteye, eh?"

"Wait!" He exclaimed and reached for her hand. She stopped as soon as she heard him. He really didn't need to grab her wrist, but did it just in case. Priss felt the familiar feeling of déjà vu, as he too stood up from his chair. He had done the same thing on... THAT night. "Did... y'know... " He seemed to fumble with the words. He still held her hand in his and carefully squeezed it as he tried to find the words. "D-did it mean anythin' for ya? I mean... Y'know... That night?"

Priss bit down hard on her lip. She cursed herself for even thinking back! What was she gonna tell him now? The truth? His previous words echoed; 'Will the truth hurt?' No, not him. Only her pride. "I..." She started, his ears perked up. "I guess... I guess it did..." She smiled faintly. In her mind, her forehead was now only a bruised, bloody lump, caused by all the times she slammed her head on the table.

As a huge weight seemed to lift from his shoulders, he relaxed and let out a relieved sigh. Maybe... Maybe she DID like him?

They looked at each other for a while, without saying anything. It was quiet, even the sleeping gang seemed to have grown silent. But they didn't think about that now. His eyes twitched nervously before gently taking her other hand too. He needed to be sure she really liked him! The same way he liked her!

Her heart fluttered as he leaned closer and kissed her. Just a quick kiss, he thought. If she slapped him again, then she probably didn't like him. Probably. But what happened then, neither of them was sure what it was that exactly happened, but she threw herself around his neck and pressed her lips against his.

Now it was his turn to stagger in surprise. He felt that same happily fluttering feeling again in his stomach. The first time he felt it was when the sheriff and her returned to Dirt, with those two men from Diego City. He could never remember their names. At first, he thought that he had just eaten a bunch of cocoons again and they somehow turned into butterflies who now were trying to escape their prison. It took almost two days before he realized that it was thanks to HER that he got all fluttery inside. A feeling he never felt before, and he loved it! He threw his arms around her, embraced her to never let go again. 'I... I need to tell her! Tell her that I lo...'

A sudden whistle interrupted his thoughts. And apparently hers too, since she got all tensed up in his arms.

"Conseguir una habitación!"

"You go, ol' chap!"

"Oh, gimme a break!..."

They quickly broke their kiss and looked around in the room. Everyone, except Flitch, were wide awake. Hicks cocked an eyebrow as he watched them both with disbelief. Sam looked more or less annoyed.

Bentley and Priss looked at each other before he turned to the gang. Bentley cocked his head at them. "R-really, guys?"

Priss covered her eyes with one hand and clenched her teeth. How long had they been awake? How much had they heard?

"Well, it IS a bit difficult to sleep when there are two persons talking in the room. Haven't you noticed the acoustic? There's a reason it's called a communion room!"

"Umm... Well, ya see... Errm, we were just... Talkin'! And... Uhh" Bentley nervously switched his eyes from Priss, whom he still held in his arms, to his companions, back to Priss, back to the outlaws, etc. Fledge burst out laughing and said something in Spanish. Too bad his brother wasn't awake to translate. Scrange started chuckling at his friends nervousness too. Hicks rolled his eyes and went back to bed, just as someone entered the room.

"Great! Y'all awake! Now I don't need to set Arrow on ya!" Rango laughed, fully dressed with poncho and all. Behind him his black roadrunner came tipping on her long legs. She looked a bit disappointed.

"Thank th'two lovebirds fer that!" Hicks grunted and nodded to the couple, still holding each other.

Rango nodded approvingly. "Thanks! Don't know what I missed, but good job! Ya two just saved me a load of patience!" He said. A snore rumbling from Flitch, still curled up into a spiky ball, made Rango frown and turn around. "Fledge, wake yer sleepin' brother up, will ya?" He said with a grimace.

Fledge tilted his head. "Que?"

"You..." Rango pointed at Fledge. "... take yer brother..." His finger wandered to the snoring ball of spikes. "... And WAKE him UP!" He kicked into the air and rubbed his eyes, like someone who just woke up.

"Ah!" The porcupine nodded, grabbed his boot and threw it at his brother. It got stuck on his spikes, but it was still enough to abruptly wake him up from his sleep.

Fledge hollered something at him and the two brothers started squabbling in Spanish.

Bentley slowly let go of Priss, letting his arms fall down to her hands. His head drooped and he looked up at her from underneath his thick tuft of hair. "Umm... Breakfast?"

She shrugged. "Well, why not?" Great start on the day, huh?

About an hour later, the guys were all good to go. Now they only had to wait for Thunder Wing, who still hadn't shown his face.

Jonas were there too. He yawned loudly and rubbed one of his eyes with his tailtip. "Aj just dont get it... Waj do jo want to leave so urrly anywaj?"

"If we arrive at dawn, then we've got a bigger chance of surprisin' 'em. I bet they're still tryin' to get themselves together and clear up what's goin' on..." Rango answered and scratched the bumpy skin underneath all the feathers on Arrows neck. The bird was leaning her head on his shoulder and her eyes were closed, clearly enjoyed getting groomed.

"That make sense, Aj gess..."

Bentley made some final adjustments on Grumpys, his big dark brown roadrunner, saddle when Priss sneaked up behind him. He squeaked and jumped to the side when he felt someone poking his shoulder. Quickly turning around, he saw Priss standing there, giggling.

"I'm sorry!" She giggled.

He cocked his head at her. "No, you're not!" He said with a grin and turned back to the roadrunner, who grew even more annoyed by Priss' presence. As if it wasn't bad enough that he got waken up early as hell, now a whole frickin' crowd were beginning to form around him! Yes, two people is a crowd this early in the morning! "I thought ya were gonna go back to sleep? I bet it's quiet in the room now"

"Well, I might later... I just..." She hesitated, gulped and closed her eyes as she held out her scarf. "I... Ijustwannagiveyathisfirst!" She said, feeling rather stupid, and not to mention cliche... "A-a good luck charm! I-I think the Dirtonians, n-no I KNOW, they'll shoot to kill. Wounded Bird, sheriff Rango, Ergil, Buford, Slim, Turley, even Beans. They're all good shots, not to mention the three Rattlesnakes and well... Errm... I just thought that you'll need all the luck ya can get!"

He chuckled and took it. "Thanks a bunch!" He tied it around his neck. "Nice! Whaddya say, do I look good in purple or what?" A chuckle escaped from Priss' lips as he showed off his new accessory. Suddenly he looked like he remembered something and started digging around in his pockets. "While we're at it... Hmm, strange! I could swear I had it right he... Oh wait! Here it is!" He got a tiny object from one of the inner pockets on his coat. It was a small doll, a voodoo doll, made out of some worn out yellow fabric. One of its button eyes had fallen off and been replaced by a cross stitch and it's hair was a mess off gray yarn. "This 'ere is my lucky charm! I got it from the ol' woman who took care of me at the plant... tation... Errm, but now I think you'll need it more here!" Priss accepted the doll he held out for her and curiously inspected it. "Besides..." He grinned and pointed with his thumb at the scarf. "... I've got this one now!"

She looked up at him and smiled carefully. "T-thanks..." She said and held the doll close.

He placed a hand behind her neck, bent down and kissed her. "No! Thank you, Prissy!"

Then, the sound of heavy claws scraping against rock brought everyones attention to one of the corridors and from the shadows, a large bald eagle emerged. The big raptor barely fit inside the nest, he had to slightly bend his head down to not hit the roof. On his white head he wore another six long, dark tipped feathers as some sort of headwear and his round, yellow eyes seemed able to pierce ones very soul. His long, sharp talons made an almost metallic sound as he slowly walked up to the group. He clapped his black tipped and curved beak and leaned down, glaring at Rango with one eye.

"Long time no see, Hunter in Black..." He said with a voice that sounded surprisingly normal.

Rango tapped his hat the large raptor. "It's a pleasure to make yer acquaintance once again, Thunder Wing" He said, which resulted in an amused clatter of the beak from the eagle.

"Thunder Wing wish he could say the same, Hunter in Black. But he can see the Laughing One is still riding with you, and is immediately filled with contempt" Thunder Wing lifted his head and looked at Bentley with a mixture of emotions, none which seemed positive.

The hyena seemed to shrink under the gaze of the raptor and chuckled nervously. "So, I take it that you're still mad at me, eh Thunder?"

Priss raised an eyebrow at him. What had he done this time?

"I still has to say that we all are thankful for yer assistance t'day, Thunder Wing" Rango hurried to say, trying to avoid a confrontation between the two. "It's very much obliged!"

The bird turned his head back at the bountyhunter, who seemed puny in front of the bird of prey. "You need Thunder Wings help today, yes?"

"Yeah, we'd be really grateful if ya could keep Rattlesnake-Jake away while we give the others time to free Coral. Name yer prize an' I think we can come to an agreement!"

Thunder Wing nodded at Bentley. "Thunder Wing would gladly help his old friend Hunter in Black. Thunder Wing wants no money. But Thunder Wing wants the Laughing Ones scalp for humiliating him."

Rango grimaced. "Right, I got ya! But there's one slight problem; I really need this guy alive an'..." Thunder Wing raised an invisible eyebrow. Rango sighed and shook his head before turning to Bentley. "Bentley, come here!"

Bentleys ears drooped and he seemed to make himself even smaller. "D-do I have to?" He squeaked. "I-I'd like to keep my hair on my head, thank you!"

"You should've thought of that before tippin' tar over him! Bentley, here! Now!" The bountyhunter drew his knife from his belt and Priss' heart skipped a beat. He wasn't gonna do it, was he?!

Bentley whimpered unhappily and glanced down at Priss. She looked just as scared as him. He bit his lip and slowly walked up to Rango, standing stiffly in front of him with his arms pressed along his sides.

"Stand still now, ya hear? Ya don't want me to cut ya with this thing!" Rango said and with a quick swoosh he cut off a piece of his companions dark brown bangs. Bentley yelped, but didn't move. The bountyhunter put the cut off tuft of hair in Thunder Wings massive claws. "That's all the hair ya git from this guy, sorry. Besides, I ain't the only one who needs him alive, y'know!"

Bentley looked like he would faint any second. "Aww... My hair..." He scowled and carefully touched the part where a big tuft were missing. Priss rolled her eyes and gritted her teeth. All that drama for some hair? Gee, and she thought it might've been the real deal! Great, now she felt even more stupid...

Thunder Wing closed his talons around the hair and made an amused chuckle. "This will do. For now" He cast a menacing look at Bentley. If he was serious or just kidding around was hard to tell, but Bentleys gulp of fear still echoed through the cavern as the bird straightened his posture as much as the roof would allow. "Dawn is drawing near. We should leave."

"You're right." Rango grinned and threw himself up in Arrows saddle. The black roadrunner, who sleepily had been leaning on her masters shoulder, was now alert and eager to leave. "Boys! Y'all heard him, lets ride!"

Thunder Wing had his own, personal entrance: a large hatch in the roof that could only be removed by the bird. As soon as the gang and the eagle left, Priss and Jonas went their separate ways, Jonas mumbling something about paperwork while Priss went back to bed.

But when she finally lay down on her simple bed, she just couldn't get herself to sleep. She picked out the little doll Bentley gave her and just looked at it. If he really got it from his caretaker on the... in his old life, then it must have some sort of sentimental value to him, so why did he decide to give it to her? But then again, she gave him her scarf.

She slapped herself on the forehead. That felt so stupid, and cheesy! Why did she do that? Why not just complete the picture by dressing up in a veil and wave a frickin' napkin after him as he left? She moaned in annoyance and turned to the side, facing the wall, still with the little doll in her hand. Suddenly she grabbed one of her boots by the side and pulled out a small dagger, hidden inside the shaft. She hid it under Birdies saddle, which acted as her pillow. Better safe than sorry. Closed her eyes and finally began to drift off into sleep.

But then her eyes sprung wide open again. Wait, where was Bad Bill and his crooks?

In Dirt...

It was nearly dawn and the townspeople had recently left for Beans' farm. Beans herself refused to leave with the rest though, despite all of Rangos nagging and begging.

But he couldn't say he was surprised, she wanted to get back at that bountyhunter for ridiculing her and the town! And a Beans in 'vengeance-mode' was someone you should just stay out of the way of. Stay outta the way and pray you weren't the one on her 'to-mess-with-list'..

Rango had now gathered everyone remaining in the saloon, and was going through the plans for the eleventh time. Neither of them had gotten that much sleep, and they were all getting cranky.

"This is just RIDICULOUS!" Thomas the cockroach exclaimed, throwing all of his four arms in the air. "Why are we goin' through this again?! Skip the bullcrap an' lets hunt these suckers down! I've got a bone t'pick with that hyena..."

"Well, yeah? Git in line!" Buford rumbled. "He owes me for two broken windows, a chair, three tables an' a fan!"

"A fan?"

"Yeah y'know those spinnin' things in the roof?"

"I know what they are! But... how?"

"Ya don't wanna know..."

Slim slammed his fist on the table. "Well, as long as no one touches that darn coyote, he's mine!"

"No way, if anyone's pickin' that guy it's me! He shot my foot!"

"Dream on you two! Hicks Red is wanted in 12 states! It's my job as a Ranger to bring him in to justice!"

"What are ya, a bountyhunter? Then ya an' that murderer could go an' start a club! The bountyhunter is mine, for the record!"

"Yers? Why? It wasn't YER son he shot!"

"As long as I get to deal with Samuel, I don't give a rats ass 'bout what any of you do!"

In the middle of the cacophony, Rango sat and massaged his temples. Jake was grinding his teeth in the corner while Blake and Jolene were betting on who would get who.

"Listen, everybody..." Rango stood up, trying to get everyones aggention. "Hey! Listen, I've gotta say something here!... HEY!"

"SIT DOWN AND SHUT YER BLOODY TRAPS BEFORE I FILL YA UP WITH 'NUFF LID T'USE YA AS MARACCAS!" Jake yelled and slammed his gatlin rattle on the nearest table, completely crushing it. That had immediate effect, as everyone shut up and sat down.

"Whats up with people crushin' my tables?" Buford mumbled and leaned one of his elbows at the bar.

Jake cocked his head at Rango, who gave a shaky nod as a thanks before clearing his throat.

"Listen up y'all! I know how much everyone o' ya wanna see these men dangle..." He said and was met by a series of nods and "Aye!"s. "But lets not get ahead of ourselves here! For I've got a plan for when they return...!"

"What're ya yappin' 'bout now, ya fruitcake?!" Thomas interrupted him. "'Cuz if ya want us to dress up as a bunch o' Kansas City faggots an' pretend to be a troupe, then FORGET IT! I've heard all 'bout yer so-called plans!"

"Shut up, Thomas!" The twin deputies of Dry Creek said in unison.

Rango cleared his throat again and continued: "Well, as I was sayin': they'll probably be back soon to get their snake back and..."

"An' when they do I'll snap 'em swines!" Thomas interrupted him once again.

Rango did a frustrated sigh and glared at the cockroach with squinted eyes. "Are ya done?" He growled. Thomas leaned back on the chair and nodded. "Good, then keep quiet while I'm talking! Now, as I was sayin'..."

He got interrupted again, this time by a loud scramble from behind the counter. Everybody heard it and sat completely still. Blake, who was closest to the counter, slowly and quietly let his tail sneak in behind the counter. A frightened scream and some more noise was heard, Bufords face turned pale by the sound of breaking glass, before Blake finally caught the culprit and hoisted it up in the air.

"Mattie?!" Mr Edwards exclaimed as his youngest daughter was panicking in the snakes tight grip.

"Oh, this one belongs to ya? Too bad I'm hungry right now, then!" Blake grinned and let the little terrified kangaroo rat dangle over his half-opened mouth. Jolene frowned and slapped him, making him drop the child who screamed and ran to her father. "What?! I was just kiddin'!" Blake winced when she threatened to hit him again.

Little Mattie gulped and looked up at her father with a guilty look on her face. He was too shocked to see his daughter that he couldn't find the right words. "Mattie!" He slowly shook his head. "What're ya doin' here?! Ya were supposed to be with yer mother! And yer brother, wha...? What're ya doin' here?!" He frowned and went down on one knee, looking his daughter in the eyes.

"Umm..." She uneasily played with her small hands, twisting and turning them. " Umm, I.. I don't know... I don't wanna go..."

"What's she doin' here, man?! We can't have a kid runnin' 'round!" Thomas exclaimed, clearly frustrated that this kid managed to sneak in here without anyone noticing.

"I'm sorry... I-I just wanna help gettin' the man who shot Phillip..."

"Never mind, the kid can stay!"

"But Mattie, what 'bout yer mother? Dont'cha think she's worried sick now when you're here?"

"Nah, I wrote her a note!"

Thomas nodded approvingly. "I think I like this kid!"

Mr Edwards stood up and turned to Rango. "I'm sorry sheriff, but I gotta catch up to the others an' return Mattie to her mother. I'm terribly sorry!" He said and grabbed his daughters hand. Mattie pouted.

Rango waved with his hand. "Don't worry 'bout it! I'll fill ya in on the details later!" He said and nodded reassuringly.

_Bong... Bong... Bong..._

It was the bell in the clocktower. It was ringing?

"What in tarnation?" Sheriff Woodrow said, getting to his feet with a rifle in his hands.

Jake frowned and raised his head, sticking his tongue out for a couple of seconds. When it returned into his mouth, he hissed and his eyes narrowed into slits. "He's here!" A grim chuckle escaped him and he lunged for the exit, not caring if anyone stood in his way or not. Everyone followed his example.

"HEY! YOU DOWN THERE!" A familiar voice made everyone turn their heads up to the clocktower. The bountyhunter were leaning on the rail, waving a gun around. "WE MISSED THIS TOWN SO MUCH WE DECIDED TO SWING BY! THAT'S OKAY BY YA, ISN'T IT SHERIFF?!" He laughed.

Jake grinned and a metallic twirling sound were made as he readied his gun. Suddenly someone were poking him. "What, Blake?!" He spat and turned around to glare at his little brother.

Blake pointed up to the sky. "I dun wanna scare ya, but I've got a lil' riddle for ya, bro; what is big an' feathery with deadly talons an' a sharp beak an' happens to be headed this way?"

**Aaah, I just love the smell of cliffhangers in the morning, dont'ya guys?**

**Anyway, a MASSIVE chapter I know, but it was necessary xD! Bentleys character is about to go through some pretty interesting changes (but don't worry, he'll be just as silly and adorable as ever! Nothing can take his goofyness away from him ;)), and I thought it might be easier to understand him if you got to know more about who he actually was and stuff, although I didn't intend for him to get so... emotional about it o_o. Imagining Bentley as angry was probably the hardest part... But, I guess it still makes sense, right? **

**Sorry if it was too much sweetness going on and I'm VERY sorry if it was sweet enough to give you caries! I guess I got carried away ^^"... (Pun not intended...)... I hope it won't happen again...**

**Anyway, I'll see when the next chapter is done, considering I've got an extremely annoying writers block totally draining my brain of ideas -.-...**

**Delilah OUT! (I think this is the last Delilah OUT ever -.-...)**


	35. Priscillas long day

**I know, I KNOW y'all wanna know whats going on in Dirt first, and I admit I ended the previous chapter a bit... evul :MUAHAHAHAAA:! But this is a pretty important chapter D:! I actually intended to this to be the next chapter, but I realized it would make more sense, and fit better, if I wrote this first, soo here it is ^^"... Chapter 35 (holy shiet!) It's pretty long, almost as long as the previous xD  
**

**Oh, and if anyone's getting disoriented: there's a map of the first floor of the Smugglers Nest in my dA gallery (PrincessPurplePie, if you didn't know :P), I hope to finish the second floor and the basement soon ^^**

**Aaand I've decided to write thoughts in cursive instead, looks a lot better methinks ^^...**

***** Chapter Thirtyfive : Priscillas Long Day *****

With a gasp, she jolted awake and drew the knife under the saddle-pillow. She just sat there, holding a knife in one hand, a worn voodoo doll in the other, and stared blankly ahead of her. Why did she jolt away like that? There were no one around? And she couldn't remember what she dreamed either.

Priscilla stretched out her arms behind her neck and yawned. She felt like crap. She took the knife and used its blade as a mirror. No wonder, she looked like crap too! Her hair was messy and she had dark rings under her eyes. _Beauty sleep, my ass..._

She winced and slid the knife back into its notch in the boot-shaft. Combing out her hair as well as she could with her fingers and hoping nobody would notice her morning face. She was putting on her boots when she remembered where she was:

The Smugglers Nest! Home and workplace for fifty shady men with equally shady pasts. Her gang was probably busy wreaking havoc in Dirt; her mission while being in this hole was to play spy and figure out what the shady men were plotting.

"Fucking great..." She mumbled to herself. The only thing that worried her were the Gajerra brothers, two soulless outlaws with pure evil running through their veins, who wouldn't hesitate to cut the throat of every single kid in an orphanage just for laughs.

Sure, Rango, the bountyhunter Rango, was capable of shooting kids and sometimes he seemed a little bit, how Fledge would put it; loco. But somehow, he gave her the impression that maybe he weren't such an evil man after all. Maybe it was because he treated them all like his friends, joking, laughing, caring. He truly was quite the marshmallow on the inside, wasn't he?

Her eyes wandered down to the little doll she held in her hand. It took a couple of seconds for her to recall receiving it from Bentley. "A lucky charm, huh?" She mumbled to herself as she remembered giving her scarf to Bentley. She put the doll in her pocket and left the round communion room. _Lets see if some of the ol' sheriffs acting talents somehow rubbed off on me..._ She thought to herself.

She had no idea how long she had been casually walking around, but so far she got nada. Zip. Zero.

Most people seemed to either ignore her or avoid her as she came walking through the gloomy corridors, only lit by the torches and lanterns that were either nailed to the walls or hanging from the roof. However, there were some who turned their heads, but a death-glare from Priss made their heads turn back again, some even began to whistle innocently. But she would only roll her eyes to them and keep walking.

She hadn't seen the Gajerra brothers either, which meant that they were still out on their mission. Whatta relief!

She saw a couple of workers standing together in a crowd every now and then, talking amongst themselves. But when she managed to sneak as close as she could she would always end up disappointed: "Blah blah blah weather blah blah blah train robbers blah blah blah my head hurts blah blah blah"

After what felt like hours, it was a bit hard to tell direction and time in the Nest since everything looked practically the same, she got fed up with walking around and eavesdrop on the others. Instead she headed for the stable and out of boredom started chatting with Birdie.

"Isn't this crazy, huh ol' boy?" She chuckled and shook her head. Her roadrunner was lying on the ground, tilted his head and looked at her with round, very light yellow colored eyes. "I mean, we're supposed to be catching outlaws, and now we work for an outlaw who makes money on catching other outlaws and who's got a close friend who's an outlaw and now we're spying on his outlaw-workers because our outlaw-boss thinks they're plotting somethin' against his outlaw-friend... Makes my brain hurt just thinkin' 'bout it!" Birdie didn't seem to be interested in thinking about something like that, he just tucked his head under his wing again and went back to sleep. Priss chuckled again. "Well, ya seem to be livin' a rough life!"

Suddenly she heard voices entering the stable. One of them made a hollow _clonk_ whenever he put down one of his feet. A pegleg? Wes? She crept in behind Birdie, careful not to be seen.

"Hell, I dunno, Bob" A whiny voice said, definitely Wes. "I mean, I ain't use t'this kinda stuff. I mean, sure, robbin' a stagecoach is one thing, we're talkin' 'bout a mutiny on the Ki..."

"Schh! Not so loud! Haven't ya seen that little ex-deputy sneakin' 'round? Looks kinda suspicious if ya ask me, so ya better keep yer voice down! She could be anywhere!"

"What? Ya think she's some kinda spy or somethin'?"

"I dunno, matey. I honestly don't know! But since Rango's been suspectin' us for quite a while now, it's not impossible that he's sent out that lil' wench t'snoop 'round!"

Priss raised an eyebrow. _Really? Wench? You too?_

"Alright... But there's one thing I've gotta ask ya..." Their voices were lowered to loud whispers. "We're gonna need the Kings help t'git into the valve, right?"

"Nah, not really, we'll only need his key. Nobody knows where he keeps it though..."

_The valve?_

"Good, 'cause I've really been itchin' t'git back at 'im fer makin' me clean up after every mess that Bentley makes! Like yesterday he an' that girl dumped a load of flour in my head, and who got to clean all that flour up? Me!"

"Flour? Where did he git that?"

"Hell, don't ask me! I bet he just pulls that kind of stuff outta his ass or somethin'!"

"Hahaha, I bet! By the way, ya think he an' that ex-deputy might got a thing fer each other or somethin'?"

"Huh? Whaddya mean by that, Bob?"

"What I mean?! Haven't ya seen that he's clingin' on t'that gal like some godarn s'curity blanket? This could be perfect!"

"I think ya just lost me there..."

"I mean that this might be a great opportunity to git back at that good-fer-nothin' prankster! I've heard that the Gajerra brothers saw her lil' stunt on Caleb and got really interested in her, an' maybe they'll..."

"Urgh, don't start talkin' 'bout those devil-lizards with me! I get goosebumps just by hearin' that name!"

"What name, Wes? Gajerra?"

"Stop it, Bob!"

"Alright, alright! But, if we could use 'er git back at 'im, would ya do it?"

"Of course! That bastard is the reason I'm limpin' 'round with this!" The sound of a fist knocking against wood echoed. "But ya better get this thing clear: I ain't talkin' with 'em dragons! Nu-uh! No siree!"

A door slammed shut and the two critters were out of hearing distance. Priss slowly got up from the floor and looked around. Nobody there. Good! She sneaked out, almost tripping over her feet. That wasn't a bad piece of information she just heard! Now, she just had to stay alive until she could deliver the message to Rango.

Despite that she knew it was best if she just hurried back to their headquarters, she realized that she was thirsty. Besides, she hadn't checked out the eastern parts of the Nest yet. She found her way to the other communion room, also known as the Eastern Com. room, mostly because she overheard someone talking about the bar.

He was right; half of the Eastern Com. room was built into a saloon. Lucky her, considering she was in desperate need of a drink.

The counter was placed at the furthest end, forcing her to pass a smaller ocean of tables, several of them were occupied too. A self-playing piano was playing a monotone, happy little song and smoke from many mens cigars and cigarettes hung low in the air. It was like stepping into a shabby saloon in a small, yankee town.

She made her way to the bar, ignoring the looks she got and sat down on one of the tall chairs. The fat boar standing behind the counter and wiping a metal plate gave her a skeptical look. She returned the look and ordered; "A drink, anything. Cactus juice or somethin'..."

The boar let out a rumbling laughter and turned to walk away from the loco chic that just ordered cactus juice. The laughter spread to rest of the room, although not as loud as the boar was laughing.

Priss growled, stretched over the counter and grabbed the boar by his collar and dragged him down to the polished surface. "Oh, I'm sorry if I wasn't clear 'nuff, Piglet!" She hissed in the boars face and was almost taken back by his excruciatingly bad breath. "A drink! Pronto!" She let him go and he backed into the shelf behind him.

"Sorry, miss! We don't serve ladies here!" He grunted with a smirk.

Priss raised an eyebrow. "An' WHAT in tarnation makes ya think I'm a lady?" She turned to the rest of the room. "Am I givin' ANYONE the impression that I'm a lady?!"

"Well ya sure as hell ain't no man, not with 'em curves!" A man sitting around the counter chuckled and turned to her. He was a long and thin ringtailed cat with a huge jack in one of his ears and a massive golden ring in the other. Another familiar face from the wanted posters in the sheriffs office.

She crossed her arms. "Lemme guess, Jacques Harlekin, aka GoldJack?"

GoldJack laughed. "Seems like someone's been doin' her homework!" He rumbled with a wide grin, displaying a whole row of nothing but gold teeth. "Thatta good girl!"

"Well, it's my job!" She shrugged and turned to the boar again. "Oy, Porky! Where's my drink?"

"Yeah, I've heard 'bout ya! You were the deputy of that little town, what was it called now again, Filth?"

She turned back to GoldJack with a snort. "Dirt. It's name is Dirt"

"What's the difference?" He said and grinned again, the golden teeth glistening in the light from the lanterns.

Priss thought about giving him a smack on the head, but instead she just grinned and shrugged. "Oh, not much. Just that Filth is a town further to the southwest. And they've got really bad tortillas down there, lemme tell ya!" She tilted her head at the bartender. "Hellooo? I ain't leavin' 'til I get my drink, Porkchops!"

"Hog." The boar grumbled. "The name's Hog!"

"Alright then, Hoggie..." She slammed her palms on the counter, locking eyes with the much bigger boar. "If I don't see my drink in front of me in three seconds, I'm gonna climb over this stupid bar and shove yer hooves up yer snout and I roll ya out in the hall like a bowlin' ball! Get the picture?"

Hog looked like he was gonna respond when his face grew pale white and he staggered back. Priss smirked. That's more like it! Even GoldJack turned back to his drink, not saying a word.

"Ya heard the lady, Hog. Give 'er a drink already" Someone hissed behind her, his cold voice sending chills down her spine and she felt the color drain from her face. She gulped and slowly turned around, her heart beating like crazy. Right behind her stood a Komodo dragon, tall and menacing, probably even taller than Bentley, one of the most terrifying sights she's seen in a long time. There were something in his eyes, those bloodthirsty ice blue orbs standing out in contrast to his black armor-like skin, that hypnotized her, leaving her paralyzed with fear. She heard Hog put down the plate he was wiping, fill up a glass and place it on the counter with a shaking hand behind her.

She took a deep breath and said with an unsteady voice: "Pancho Gajerra, I presume?"

The Komodo dragon laughed, a horrifying, blood-curling laughter. "No, I'm Francisco, Pancho's standin' right next to ya, sweetie" He said and nodded to her right.

She slowly turned her head and there was another Komodo dragon leaning on the counter, with the same icy cold eyes and a cigar in his mouth. However, this one had some sort of stitches underneath his right eye. They looked fresh. "Howdya'do, sweetpea?" He said, blowing out a puff of smoke in her face.

She tried to keep the coughing inside as she felt the smoke make it's way down to her lungs and her eyes became watery. "Oh w-well, close 'nuff..." She said with a stifled cough.

"I don't blame ya, even our ma couldn't tell us 'part!" Francisco said with a chuckle. "Right, Pan?"

"Yeah, but that was prolly just 'cuz she was blind, dont'cha think, Franko?" Pancho added and the two brothers laughed that blood freezing, evil-oozing laughter again, Pancho blew out another puff.

"Will ya knock that off already?!" Priss spat as she once again got a face full of smoke. The two Komodo dragons chuckled and Francisco leaned against the counter on her other side.

"Or else?" Pancho raised an invisible eyebrow at her.

"Or else I'll shove that cigar where the sun doesn't shine!" Priss replied without skipping a beat. Not realizing until afterwards what a stupid threat that was to him.

Francisco totally lost it and started laughing maniacally.

"Ya know what?! I think I really like this girl! Dont'cha, Pan?" Francisco innocently rolled his eyes and looked at Pancho, who grinned and drew out a big knife from his belt, licking the cold metal with his long, split tongue before jabbing it into the bardesk. Hog jumped and decided it was time to move away to the other part of the counter. Priss involuntarily gulped. "So, you're the infamous Priscilla, ex-deputy of Dirt, who singlehandedly brought down the most obnoxious kid in the world?" Francisco leaned closer, inspecting her face with an approving smirk.

"As far as I'm concerned, I still see myself as the deputy of Dirt until sheriff Rango says otherwise" Priss replied and backed off as far as she could, until she felt the counter poking at her back. "I thought ya two fellas were out on a mission!"

"Is that so?" Pancho tilted his head.

"Well we were, but it seems our foreign friend underestimated us again." Francisco tsked and hopelessly shook his head. "Besides..." He said, putting a clawed finger under Priss' chin. "Me brother n' I've been dyin' to meet'cha, hun!"

Priss growled and jerked her head away. "Don't touch me!" She hissed.

Pancho chuckled. "Ya know, ya haven't even touched yer drink yet!" He said and nodded to the little glass.

Priss bit her lip. _Get yourself together, for christs sake!_ She told herself. _Ya can't let 'em think you're afraid!... Alright, maybe you're a lil' bit afraid, but think! Use yer good ol' noodle; what would sheriff Rango do?_

Priss took a quick glance at her drink. Judging on the color, it was cactus juice. Good ol' cactus juice. She picked up the glass with the amber colored liquid and slowly put it to her lips when she got an idea. She wanted to try something, something she had only seen sheriff Rango do before. She nodded to Panchos cigar. "Ya mind if I borrow that for a while, buddy?" She asked and, without waiting for an answer, she snatched it from the Komodo dragons mouth. She looked at it for a few seconds, quickly rethinking her idea. But then again, the priceless puzzled looks on their faces was enough to get her to throw it into her mouth and swallow it whole. _Bad idea! Stupid idea! Worst idea of the century! How the heck did Rango do this?!_ She managed to keep a hold of the glass in her hand while she felt the disgusting cigar-stump burn in her throat. _C'mon! Sweep it! Sweep it now!_ She emptied the glass in one swig, getting an 'uh-oh' feeling when she felt the highly flammable cactus juice hit the lit cigar.

Pancho showed his razorsharp teeth in an annoyed snarl. "Is this some kind of jo...!?" He didn't get to finish the sentence before Priss burped, engulfing him in a fiery inferno erupting from her mouth.

Francisco almost doubled over with laughter as his brother ran around with his face on fire, screaming all sorts of random obscenities and curse words. Priss leaned back at the counter, gasping. _Never again... Never again..._ She promised herself. How the heck did Rango managed to do that and still stay so calm afterward? Her mouth tasted like ash and now she was even thirstier than before.

Pancho eventually found a barrel with water, whose purpose was to wake the worst drunks up by dunking their head into the barrel. Pancho wasn't drunk, but he still flew head first into the murky water with a fizzle, making steam float up around him.

Francisco laughed even more hysterically and had to lean on the counter for support. Even the ones sitting around the tables dared to carefully laugh at the spectacle.

Pancho slowly withdrew his head and turned to Priss, the icy blue eyes still burning. With rage. His thick skin had saved him from damage, physical damage that is. However, his ego might've gotten a hefty noseburn. "SHUT UP! Shut the FUCK up! ALL O' YA!" He screamed, his words bouncing around the walls and echoing out in the rest of the Nest. Everyone in the bar immediately shut up. Almost everyone, that is.

"Aww, c'mon now brother! Ya gotta admit, that was hilarious!" Francisco chuckled, dusting off some soot from his brothers back.

Pancho turned his eyes to Priss, his eyes were still burning. With rage. "Ya lil' fucking BITCH!" He growled, jerked his knife free from the bar desk and quicker than lightning, he had thrown his free hand around her neck and thrown her on the counter, sweeping down glasses and bottles down to crash on the floor. He grinned maliciously and placed the knifes blade right next to her eye. She tried to scream, but he just hardened his grip around her throat, making it hard for her to even breathe.

"Be still, woman! I'm just gonna carve out 'em big, pretty eyes o' yers an' give 'em to yer beloved Bentley. I bet he'll be THRILLED to get a present like that!" He chuckled and changed his grip on the knife, so the tip was pointing down at her face. Her heart was beating faster than it ever done before and she could swear she saw he life pass before her eyes. She whimpered and began to shake her head violently from side to side. "For cryin' out LOUD! Ya gotta be still, ya dumbass! I don't wanna damage the rest of that pretty face more than necessary!" Pancho hissed, tightening his grip.

Francisco sighed and put a brotherly arm around Panchos shoulders. "When will ya lighten up? It was just a joke! And a god damn funny one too! Never even heard 'bout anythin' like that!" He sounded intrigued, but when he was about to ask Priss where she had learn it, he noticed that his brother was about to strangle her. "Oh, Pan! I'm sorry, but no eye-cuttin' today. Ya know how annoyin' that Swede's gonna git when he finds out that we mutilated one of his friends men! Or woman!"

Pancho gritted his teeth and growled, but obeyed his brother and let go of the nearly unconscious aye-aye. She slid down from the counter and landed on her knees on the floor. Black spots were dancing in front of her eyes and she gasped to regain her breath. That near-death experience had shook her more than she dared to admit.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, please forgive me brother. He's SUCH a numbskull sometimes!" Francisco sighed and shook his head with an innocent smile splayed on his face. He lifted up her up as she weighed nothing and placed her back on her bar-chair. She tried to hiss at him to fuck off, but all she managed to do was hoarse coughing. "See, Pan? I think ya owe our lil' darlin' here an apology!"

Pancho mumbled something incoherent.

"Just... piss off... BOTH … of ya..." Priss managed to croak forth and she turned to the bar, her hands on the polished wood.

Francisco frowned. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Really? I just saved ya from me cuttin'-happy brother an' instead of sayin' 'thank ya' ya say: 'piss off'?" He placed a firm, cold hand on her shoulder and leaned closer. "That ain't very grateful of ya now, is it?"

"I though I said 'don't touch me' just a while ago?" She said with a snort and saw the plate still lying on the counter. Her fingers started to move towards it.

Francisco put another hand on her other shoulder and leaned in even closer to her ear and said quietly, almost whispering: "Or what? What'll ya do? Punch me to the ground and force me to apologize?"

She grabbed the plate and slammed it as hard as she could into Franciscos head. The impact sending shockwaves through the plate, making her fingers hurt.

The Komodo dragons head snapped to the side and he took a few staggering steps back, but that was all. He put a hand over his face and turned away. Priss frowned and looked down at the plate. It was a serving plate, made out of some sort of sturdy metal. Upon the impact, it got a bit bent out of shape. A blow like that would've probably even floored Hicks!

She gulped and looked back up at Francisco just as he removed the hand from his face. His eyes were burning with the same rage that Pancho had after Priss set him on fire. But he was chuckling, and thus looked even more terrifying than his brother. "That actually hurt!"

Now it was Panchos turn to burst out into maniacal laughter. "Holy shit! You're right, brother! That was great!"

Francisco took a few steps back and nodded to his brother. "Pan, it's yer lucky day; cut out ONE of 'er eyes. But I wish you'd send it to the sheriff, along with a message that he should raise his deputy better. Teach her some gratitude! And manners! Ya don't burp other people in the face!" He said and dragged his thumb along the corner of his mouth. Blood? Interesting! "I actually like women with a lil' fire in 'em. Just too bad ya had to hit me in the head like that... Not very nice of ya!"

"B-back off!" Priss exclaimed and held up the plate in front of her as a shield. When Panchos fist came smashing through the plate, she yelped and jumped back, dropping the plate. She threw a quick glance around the room. Most people had left the room by now, the ones who were left were either ignoring the scene or left when they saw Priss looking at them. She gritted her teeth. Of course no one would help. She got herself into this mess, now she had to get herself out of it!

"Now, which eye would ya prefer t'keep? The right one, or the left one?" Pancho grinned and waved his knife in front of her.

"Both!" She squeaked. She cleared her throat and repeated herself with a more normal voice.

Francisco chuckled. "Take the left one, somehow I kinda like the right one more!" He ordered, Pancho didn't have any troubles with obeying.

"Wait a second there, fellas!" An annoyingly familiar voice said, making the Gajerra brothers snap their heads around.

Priss' eyes nearly popped out on their own. "Caleb?!" She exclaimed in disbelief. The younger aye-aye stood on a table with his arms folded across his chest. One of the Gajerra brothers began to laugh again.

"Well, well, well. If it ain't the lil' circus-monkey!" Pancho breathed through his laugh attacks, while Francisco was merely chuckling.

"C'mon, Pan. Go easy on 'im! Ya don't want him t'go n' fetch his little fleacircus, do ya?"

Caleb looked bemused, raising an eyebrow at the two Komodo dragons. "Wow... You two are quite the geniuses when it comes comedy, aren't ya? Seriously, Bentleys knock-knock jokes are funnier than that! Anyway, listen fellas, I'll just cut to the case here; that woman there, I hate her guts. I couldn't care less what happens to her, she's nothin' but a dumb bitch in my eyes! No offense girly, but ya know it's true."

Priss did a flustered sigh. Of course... Just gotta be an ass no matter what!

"But c'mon! You are two adult men, right? Teaming up on ONE girl? Am I the only one hearing the coward-choire here?"

"Get lost, freakshow!" Pancho spat. "Unless ya wanna git into trouble!"

"This ain't none o' yer concern!" Francisco agreed, making a 'schoo' wave with his hand. Both of the brothers turned their backs to Priss. She took the opportunity to carefully and quietly sneak over the counter.

"Actually, in a way it is. Ya see, I'm the only one in this whole line of business that's clever 'nough to avoid Bs lil' pranks, an' he's royally pissed off 'bout it. An' I freakin' love it! But, if ya two morons in any way hurts his lil' bitch here, guess who's gonna get the worst anger-attack in the Earths history? That's right: The Nutcase himself. His sense for prank would probably be gone forever and instead he'd be thirsty for blood. And guess who'll suffer the most? I will! I mean, ya guys would probably take away the possibility for me to see Bs disappointed face as I thwart his plans once again! And if B goes all psycho on us again, guess who Jonas' gonna blame? You two. He'll kick yer sorry asses out faster than ya can say 'Mississippi'!"

"An' why should we care, again?"

"Ya know who'll come after ya once you've been kicked out from Jonas' protection, don't ya?"

Francisco laughed grimly. "Ya mean Rango? He's a joke! A wuss! An' so is his men!"

"Well if ya don't fear him, than why are ya hidin' here? EVERYONE knows ya never answer to anyone but yourselves, and we know ya HATE IT when Jonas bosses ya 'round. Still, ya came to him five years ago, asking, no, begging to work for him. Could it be b'cause ya were tryin' t'get away from someone?"

"Give us ONE reason to fear him, freakshow!"

"I can give ya more then one reason, pal: Rango knows what he's doin. He's been practicing his profession for more than twenty years, you two have only been in the headlines for seven. Not to mention it's said that him and a couple of his friends busted a small smuggling gang at the mere age of twelwe! And so far he's captured everyone he's been after: the Daltons gang, Joey Garcia, Pedro the Pistol, Captain Tip, Harry Cool and Bullseye, Looney Lula, and not to mention the infamous Jenkins brothers! He got all seven of 'em after all!"

Pancho snorted and stabbed his knife into the nearest table and walked up to the aye-aye, grabbing the kid by the collar he lifted him up. "I'm gonna beat ya badly even yer monster's gonna get nightmares from just lookin' at ya!" He hissed into Calebs face.

Caleb replied with a grin. "Oh, did I forgot to mention? Rango never turns his back on his targets, allowin' 'em to escape..."

Francisco frowned and turned around. Pancho also turned his head around. Priss' chair was empty. Hissing a curse, Francisco leaned over the counter and looked in both directions.

"FUCK!" Pancho yelled and threw the Caleb to the side and retrieved his knife before threatening the young aye-aye with it. "I'LL CUT YA LIKE FRICKIN' CHRISTMAS TURKEY, YA LIL'...!" His brother interrupted him by putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't fret, brother" Francisco grinned and nodded to the corridor just as Priss back was disappearing into the shadows. Pancho yelled another curse and tried to go after her, but was held back by his brother. "Easy, Pan. I reckon we've scared 'er 'nough fer t'day... Dont'cha think so?"

Pancho mumbled something incoherent again.

Caleb crawled to his feet and frowned. "Wait, is she headed to...?" He thought out loud to himself. His eyes widened. "Oh crap!"

Priss was running down the hallway. When she gets to the communion room again, THEIR communion room, she was never gonna leave it. Never EVER! She never wanted to risk run into the Gajerra brothers again! They weren't as scary as their posters had announced: they were worse!

She came to a four way crossroad and came to a complete halt. Looking from left to right. She had lost all sense of direction underground, everywhere looked the same wherever you looked. And this wasn't the first time it happened... A compass sure would come in handy in here!

She cursed and took a wild guess, turning left. But she didn't get far until she ran into a dead-end, concealed by the shadows. She was about to turn around again and go back the same way when she heard someone come running from the room. She clasped her hands in front of her mouth to stop herself from screaming and looked around. Nothing! Nothing here! Not even something to defend herself with!

Suddenly she saw a door. Painted in a dark color to blend in with the gloomy wall. She ran to it and said a silent prayer before pressing down the handle. Her prayer was answered: it wasn't locked!

Quickly she scurried inside and closed the door. Leaning against the wooden surface, she listened. The footsteps got closer and closer. Crap! She turned around, to see if this was another storage room. Hopefully, she could find something in here to help here barricade the door.

She found something all right.

A couple of green eyes met her and she froze in shock. It was hard to tell in the poor light, coming from one single lantern dangling from the roof, but she could tell one thing for sure: the owner to the green eyes was humongous. And pissed off.

She opened her mouth to scream but before any sound was heard, the giant roared and lashed out an enormous paw, sending her flying. Hitting the ground hard, she became stunned for a short moment, trying to regain a sense of direction. Another roar from the creature brought her back to reality and she turned to her back. The creature growled and walked towards her with long, slow steps that seemed to make the ground shake.

She couldn't move. Her eyes were wide-opened in shock. The side of her head that the monster had hit was throbbing with pain and she felt something trickle down her forehead, but if it was sweat or blood she couldn't tell.

When the creature passed under the lantern, she finally got a good look at its face; it was definitely a mountain lion, even though 'monster' would be more appropriate to call it.

Age was impossible to tell. The head seemed to small for it's enormous, muscular body and the eyes were, despite the poor light, contracted in thin slits. All over it's body was covered in long scars, especially in the face. It opened its mouth and roared a third time, displaying an impressing set of chompers. Priss closed her eyes, and fumbled with the knife in her boot. If that thing got any closer...

"Mongo, NO!" The door was flung open and Caleb barged in, placing himself between Priss and the monster. He held up his hands. "Mongo NO!" He repeated. "Bad Mongo! BAD!" To Priss' amazement, the monster, or 'Mongo', let its arms fall along it's sides and the ears flattened to its neck, it's lip were drawn back into a snarl. "It's alright, big guy! She's not dangerous! She's not a friend, but she ain't no foe either!" Caleb turned his head around and glared at Priss. "You've gotta be fakin' this, right?"

"What?!" She frowned.

"It's just not possible to be so EXTREMELY stupid like ya was right now, is it?" He growled. "First I've gotta step in an' save yer sorry ass from the Gajerra brothers...!"

"I had the situation under control!" She snarled back. "Thanks, but no! Ya didn't have to step in like that! I could handle those two!"

"Uh, yeah. If we were in the Opposite-world perhaps, but this is REALITY! I never thought you'd be stupid 'nough to pick a fight with those two, but it seems I might've underestimated you! Ya've got ANY idea how FEW there are that actually survived a clash with those two? And even fewer who survived WITHOUT losing any limbs!" He shook his head in disbelief. "And if that's not enough; ya just HAD to go bargin' in here an' scare Mongo shitless! Ya gotta have a deathwish or somethin'!"

"What?!" She exclaimed and got to her feet. "First of all: I thought they were chasin' me, I was just lookin' for a place to hide! And second: I scared HIM?! He was going to MAUL me!"

"An' maybe I shouldn't have stopped him!"

The two aye-ayes had a snarling stare-down, until a puzzled grumble from Mongo interrupted them. "It's alright, Mongo. Little Miss Brighteye here was just 'bout to leave..." He said, still keeping eye-contact with Priss.

"Miss Brighteye?" She snorted and made her way back to the door, passing the monster with extreme caution. "Have ya seen yourself in the mirror lately, runt?"

"Yeah, an' it cracked! Just piss off an' stay away already!"

She placed a hand on the handle and hesitated. "Thanks... by the way..." She growled through clenched teeth.

"Don't mention it..." He answered sternly and folded his arms. "Don't mention it EVER!"

"Not even if held under gunpoint!" She promised and disappeared through the door.

Caleb snickered and cocked his head at Mongo. "Nice hit, buddy! That's totally gonna leave a scar!" The giant tilted his head and answered with a rumbling grunt.

She managed to navigate herself back to their com. room and flopped down on the nearest chair with a deep and exhausted sigh.

This day had been crazy, to put it mildly. First she overhears two clumsy men talking about a mutiny on Jonas, then she runs into the two Gajerra brothers and last, but not least, she comes face to face with the monster that's the reason sane people leaves that brat Caleb alone.

With a loud moan, she leaned her elbows on the table and buried her face in her hands. But she quickly withdrew her head when a jolt of pain went trough her face. She looked down at her hands and saw blood. Her face grew pale.

_Oh joy!_ She thought to herself as she studied her face in the tiny reflection of the knife. Her left cheek was slightly bruised and swollen and two red slashes reached from the cheek up to her temple. He must've scratched her with his claws. Funny she hadn't noticed, had it been the shock?

She cursed and put the knife away. She knew a certain person who'd see it immediately, and he wasn't gonna be happy...

Later, after Priss managed to cleanse the wound as thorough she could with some water and a piece of cloth, she sat on the table with the little voodoo doll in her hands, her feet dangling above the floor.

She had lit a fire in the furnace and it's crackling noise echoed in the room. Everything was surprisingly quiet. Except for an occasional passerby that ran along the corridors outside, whose steps bounced around the walls even after he passed.

Priss squeezed the doll gently for the fivehundredandfourth time. She have had two near-death experiences today. And Caleb managed to save her BOTH of the times. That meant she owed him TWICE! NOT a cheerful thought! But oh well, it's better than being dead, isn't it?

She frowned at the doll. Maybe...? Maybe it DID bring her luck? If that's the case, she probably owed Bentley too. But THAT she could live with...

Suddenly she perked up. She heard something, a familiar voice. She turned around and jumped down from the table. Many familiar voices echoed from far away, probably from the main hall.

She jogged out of the room and continued down the corridor, and came to a screeching halt at the clearance.

They had returned! They all looked really beat up and Rango was soaking wet from top to toe. Hicks hat was missing and Fledge had a deep cut on his cheek. But the grins and laughter they all shared revealed that they had been successful. That and Coral soon appeared at the entrance, but she was looking troubled for some reason.

Priss was busy covering her damages with her hair and looked around for Bentley when she saw something in Rangos hand. Something long, pointy and pearly white with something red covering both ends. She became paralyzed and just stared at the object with a shocked frown.

It was a fang. A rattlesnake-fang.

**Another evil ending from my part, I know! Possibly even more evil than the last one :MUAHAHAHAHAAA:! **

**But I just couldn't resist xD!**

**Anyway, see y'all next chapter ^^! Hopefully it won't take too long...**

**And I think I'll have to change the rating to M... Realized just now that the next chapter will get kinda... bloody...**

**Delilah OUT! (Sorry, old habits y'know...)**


	36. Jailbreak!

**Omg, I can't believe somebody actually NOTICED :'D; but yes, Bat13SJx, I got Mongo from Blazing Saddles :P! (I just freakin' LOVE Mel Brooks' movies (\/)) Lol, one night after watching said movie I was just like: "Omg, I need a Mongo in this fic..." and thus, Caleb and Mongo were created, lol xD (And Bad Bill & co. will reappear in a few chapters, THEN you'll get to know what happened to them :P) **

**This and the last chapter was surprisingly easy to write, but I'm still pretty much out of ideas here, that's why the ROTH story hasn't been updated in a while -.-... So yeah, the ROTH story will take some time before next update because I have NO idea how to write that chapter TT_TT... fml...**

**Anyway, lets go see what's happening in Dirt, eh? Of course it's another überlong chappie ;)**

***** Chapter Thirtysix : Jailbreak! *****

The mighty bird, only a shadow on the clear, blue sky, let out a screech that sent a shiver of fear down Jakes back. He cursed loudly and recoiled, looking for a safe spot. He spotted the water tower just as the bird screed again and swooped down with it's claws bared.

Jolene drew her gun and fired of a bullet towards the bird, barely missing it's right wing. The eagle angrily screeched again and changed direction, upwards. "Ya okay, Jake?" Jolene turned around. No Jake. "Jakey?" She searched until she heard Blakes most malicious laughter yet. She turned to the sound and saw Jake all curled up between the beams supporting the water tower. His rattlegun was shaking ever so slightly.

"Aww, don't worry lil' brother! The mean, scary birdy won't hurt ya!" Blake cooed and earned a homicidal look from his brother.

"Shut up!" Jake hissed and scouted at the sky, trying to locate the bird. It wasn't a hawk, it was something much bigger; a bald eagle. A hawk would've been better... "Fuck my life..." Jake turned his eyes to the clocktower. Rango had vanished from the spot. "That little fucking bastard, I'll..."

Suddenly the eagle appeared out of nowhere again jabbing with it's beak at the curled up rattlesnake. This time it was Blake coming to the rescue; lunged at the bird and almost buried his fangs into one of its feathery legs. The bird retreated to the skies again and stayed hidden in the sun.

Blake turned to his brother and shook his head. "Tsk, tsk, tsk..." He said. "Ya don't look very threatening right now, Mr Grim Reaper..."

"Another word from ya and I'll stitch yer mouth together!" Jake spat in response and turned his head to Jolene, who was firing at the sky, hoping to hit the big bird. But it was like shooting in the dark, or light, as the bird was flying in a way so the sun always got into her eyes. "Stop wastin' yer bullets!"

Jolene growled something inaudible and stopped firing. She looked around instead. "Hey! Where did Rang-rang go?"

"Don't ask me!" Blake and Jake said in unison.

Sheriff Rango had ducked for cover under a wagon and slowly crawled out from his hiding spot, looking around for the eagle. He looked around before turning his head up to the clocktower again. "Wait, where did he go?"

"We don't know!" The three rattlesnakes answered a the same time with annoyed voices.

The eagle had surprised everyone present, and as people got out from their hiding spots and they all agreed that arming themselves would be the best.

Just then they heard someone shout to get their attention. The crowd with Dirtonians all turned around at the same time and saw the two porcupines on identical roadrunners come dashing towards them, holding a long saguaro cactus between themselves. They both threw it at the same time, sending it rolling towards the crowd. Only a few people didn't make it out of the way in time and a cacophony of screams and curses were heard as a heavy, spiky cactus landed on them. One of them were Thomas. Luckily, he had his strong shell, and the indestructibility of a cockroach, to protect him, but that didn't mean he was being quiet about it while crawling out from under the cactus: "GET OVAH HERE YA COWARDS! I'LL RIP OUT YER INSIDES AN WEAR 'EM AS SUSPENDERS!"

Elton helped his brother to push the cactus off him. He was about to yank out a rather large thorn that had lodged itself in Tarrants leg when the shooting began.

It was probably Jolene who had fired at the porcupines as they split from the area, and somewhere someone returned fire. Dirtonians, both hurt and fit for fight, were hiding behind anything they could fit behind; wagons, barrels, crates, beams, houses. Rango scurried in behind one of the water towers beams. "Ya don't mind sharin' this spot do ya, Jake?"

Jake didn't answer, instead he began to fire at the four riders emerging from behind the livery; the bountyhunter with the two porcupines and the coyote. However, nobody saw the three shadows sneaking away to the jail.

With the outlaws and the Dirtonians firing at each other from each side of the town, it was a miracle nobody got hurt. Perhaps it was because whenever Jake peeked out from the water tower to shoot, the eagle swooped down almost immediately, keeping the snake prisoner underneath the tall construction. And boy did he hate it! He seemed to grow more and more annoyed and frustrated by every passing second.

And while the Dirtonians were busy fighting off the outlaws, Bentley, Scrange and Sam stood around the backside of the jail. Behind a thick, sturdy wall of clay and wood were Coral, probably intrigued by the sudden ruckus on the outside.

Sam cast a hateful look around the corner, at the reddish sand colored rattlesnake, helping his sister to fend off Thunder Wing. His grip around the shotgun hardened as he squinted his eyes. He could just shoot him now. That bastard wasn't looking this way. He would be dead before he knew what hit him!

"Ey, kid!" Bentley said and snapped his fingers in front of Sams face. Sam were yanked out of his thoughts and gave the hyena an angry glare. "Ya can shoot the livin' handbag AFTER we're done savin' Coral! We ain't s'posed to let anyone know we're here, right?" Bentley said with a snicker and turned his head to Scrange. "Ya done yet?"

"If you ask me that one more time then I solemnly swear I'll cut you as soon as I'm done here!" The rat growled in response as he was tinkering with the weathered and mostly broken window. Using a ridiculously thin and pointy dagger, he loosened the hinges, which would allow the to just lift down the window eventually. The problem was just that the nails were all rusted, and would rather break than to cooperate.

"Alrighty then, cheerio!" Bentley responded with a shrug, jokingly imitating Scranges British accent. Scrange closed his eyes and counted to ten before tempering with the hinges again.

Sam clenched his teeth shut and peeked around the corner of the building again. Blake was still there. He saw the big rattlesnake close his jaws just a few inches away from the eagles foot and cursed loudly when he realized he missed. Jolene had probably gone out of the way to reload as she was nowhere to be seen. His fingers itched. So close to his revenge and yet so far... No, it was HER revenge!

"Hey, ya daydreamin' again?" Bentleys annoying voice interrupted his thoughts again. He was closer than ever to just shoot that mangy freak. "I've told ya: Coral first, killin' later! Gee, what's so good 'bout revenge any way? You and Rango are both confusin' me!"

Sam snorted. "What's so good 'bout revenge?" He repeated. "A lot! Blake'll finally get what he deserves and Belle... Isabelle will have retribution! And Rango, well I think he's got pretty fine reasons too!"

"So, this Isabelle liked murderers? Well, I guess we've all got our little..."

"It's not murder if ya got a good reason for it!"

Bentleys ears drooped and he tilted his head with a puzzled frown on his face, before bursting out in a maniacal laughter, leaning back against the house to not fall over on the ground. "Are ya serious, kiddo?!" He gasped between the laugh attacks. "That's gotta be one of the dumbest things I've ever heard, and I've heard a LOT!"

Sam growled and crossed his arms. "Well, what if we put it like this: what if Hicks were to murder Miss Priscilla in cold blood, what would ya do?"

Bentley stopped laughing and frowned at Sam. "Hicks wouldn't do that!" He protested. "She's one of us!"

"Maybe not, but what IF he did? I thought Blake was one of us too, but look what he did!" Sam flung out his arm at the snake just a couple of feet away.

The hyena raised an eyebrow at the much shorter bobcat. "But what if it weren't Blake that..." Luckily he was interrupted by Scrange, who announced that he was done with an unnecessary loud voice. Bentley clenched his mouth shut. He nearly slipped there. Good thing ol' Scrange was there!

"Of course it was Blake! Him an' his sister were the only rattlesnakes 'round, an' Jolene spend all her time at the spa!"

"You've got a spa?!" Bentleys eyes widened in surprise as he helped Scrange put the window down on the ground. "Holy cow!" Sam rolled his eyes and climbed inside the building. The rat raised an eyebrow at Bentley before clumsily climbing in after the bobcat. Bentley threw his arms up in the air. "What?! Just curious!"

Corals body ached and her head was ringing. The only thing that seemed unharmed were the bars around her. She sobbed and hung her head. Great. Now her only hope were that father would come and save her. And she didn't like being saved.

Suddenly she heard the bell ring in the clocktower. She perked up and listened.

_Bong... Bong... Bong.._

But, it haven't been an hour since it last rang, had it? But then she heard a familiar voice; Rango? Father!?

She pressed her ear against the wall, yet still she couldn't hear what he was shouting. So, they WERE coming for her after all! Then she heard the battle cry of Thunder Wing and nearly exploded with happiness. Even Thunder Wing is here! This is gonna get good!

Soon, the screaming and the shooting began and she kept her head pressed against the wall to pick up every little sound. A sudden noise coming from the office made her head snap around and stared at the door. She heard more voices and immediately recognized Bentleys voice. She couldn't recall ever being so happy to hear that madman outside a door. That usually meant trouble was coming. But in this case, trouble meant something good! Probably!

She grinned widely when the door got kicked in by the hyena himself. "Pizza delivery!" He announced causing Sam to slap his palm onto his face and slowly shake his head.

"Was that really necessary?" Scrange mumbled and carefully stepped over the remains of the broken door.

"Nah..." Bentley shrugged. "But it was fun!" He turned to Coral. "Someone ordered a Jailbreak deluxe, with extra olives, no onions?" Coral giggled, or at least she tried to, and shook her head at him.

"Bentley, just stop! What are you even talking about, that doesn't make any sense what-so ever!?"

"Aww, c'mon Scrangey! It's a joke! It ain't s'posed to make sense!"

Scrange rolled his eyes and got a ring of keys from the wall before walking up to the prison gate. However, even if he tried every key, he just couldn't find anyone who'd fit the padlock. "That's odd..." He mumbled. "None of the keys fit!"Coral frowned and pressed her face closer to the bars, peering down at the keys.

"So, lock-picking it is?" Bentley did an annoyed grimace. "That's fun that too! I guess... Sam, you've gotta stay guard. Let us know if someone decides to scurry in here, 'kay?

"Can't we just shoot it open? Destroy it?" Sam frowned and tilted his head.

"And risk attracting attention? Nope!"

The outlaws had abandoned their roadrunners and were hiding all over the town, and the townspeople got more and more frustrated at the elusive outlaws.

Jake stopped firing and looked up at the sky. The bird were still circulating over the town, skillfully dodging Jolenes bullets. The big snake cursed himself and tried to locate Durango. The black dressed lizard showed up every now and then, running alongside the street, ducking from cover to cover.

Jake was fully aware of the irony in what he was going to say;"You bloody coward, I'm gonna... huh?" Jake growled to himself, but a sudden thought hit him in the middle of the sentence.

"What's wrong, Jake?" Sheriff Rango asked, still covering behind the beam.

"There's somethin' wrong with this picture..." Jake scrunched his face up in a suspicious frown. "He doesn't seem to be attacking us"

Rango turned around completely, staring at Jake with disbelief. His siblings did the same. "I'm not sure how to put this, Jo..." Blake said and cocked his head towards their sister with a worried frown. "... but I think our brother finally lost his marbles!"

"Ya morons! I know he was the one attackin' us, but look at 'em! They ain't even tryin' t'hit us! If Durango wanted us dead, he wouldn't run 'round like that, just shootin' randomly!" The big snake gritted his teeth. "Somethin's goin' on here, an' I ain't sure I like it..."

Jolene flinched. "Now when ya mention it, where's that freaky hyena-guy? An' the rat? An' Sam?"

"Wait a sec!" Blake exclaimed. "Who's keepin' an eye on Coral?!"

The four reptiles exchanged worried glances before Jake started cussing up a storm. "Blake! Rango! Ya two go an' stand guard in the jail!" He said and turned to Jolene. "Jo, it's time to git rid offa that bird!"

Scrange used the thin dagger again and tried to pick the lock on the ancient padlock while Bentley hovered over him like a vulture.

"Ya done yet?" He asked for the fortyeight time. Scrange didn't even bother answering his question, as he'd only ask it again a few minutes later.

However, since at least ten minutes had passed, Bentley wasn't the only one getting impatient; Coral was tapping her tail on the boards on the floor and grinding her jaws against each other, Sam turned around and looked at the rat every now and then and groaned impatiently whenever he did so.

Eventually, the bobcat got bored and left his mission at the window, spying on the ones on the outside. "Step back! I'm blastin' it open right now!" He said and lifted his shotgun. Bentley stepped in front of the gun and waved his arms.

"First of all: I said 'Nope!', and second: NEVER walk away from somethin' you're s'posed to watch! 'Cause that's ALWAYS when all hell breaks loose!" He barely had time to finish the sentence when the door to the office was opened and the sheriff barged in, shortly followed by Blakes head. The five men noticed each other and they all froze, just gawking at each other in shock.

"Well, crap!" Bentley said and bolted to the door separating the jail from the office and blocked it. A loud thud and the door nearly broke from it's hinges told them that Blake had bashed into the door. "Ya think ya can hurry up with that, ol' boy?!" Bentley chuckled at Scrange and nodded to the padlock just as another bash made the wooden door creak and complain. Bentley yelped, but kept blocking the door with his body. "I said NO! We don't want any damn cookies! Move along, lil' girls! Sam! Ya gotta find somethin' we can block this shit with, except for me! This Jehovah Witness is MIGHTY persistent!" Just as he said that, and Sam was going to turn around to look for some sort of suitable barricading materials, two fangs pierced the wood and emerged on each side of Bentleys head. His face grew pale as he in the corner of his eyes saw the greenish yellow poison run down the long, pointy tooth and drip down on the ground, forming small puddles. "Saaam! Today would be a good day, y'know! Can't hold the zombies off forever!"

The two fangs withdrew and he heard the two reptiles talking on the outside. He couldn't resist putting an ear against the door and eavesdrop. Not that he could hear that much though... Scrange began to furiously pick at the lock. He really didn't work well under stressed situations like these, but he still tried his best and angrily cursed at the black, rectangular little lock that just wouldn't give in!

Bentleys ears drooped when he heard the clicking of a hammer on the other side of the door and cursed, jumping to the side just as the sheriff shot the door three times. Three new holes formed as the bullets went through the wood and out the other side, two missed their targets while the third brushed past one of Sams ears, creating a big jack in it. Strangely though, Sam seemed like he didn't even notice. Not until Bentley pointed it out that is.

With the door unguarded, Blake could finally break it down with one bash. Coral hissed at him and bared her fangs. "Sorry, ain't got time for ya now sweetie!" Blake muttered and shook chunks of ex-door off his head. He saw a quick movement in the corner of his eye and dodged, just in time for Sam to fire at the big snake. Two holes on the wall behind him was all that happened. Blake threw a quick glance back before grinning at Sam. "Let's take this in a more open space, shall we?"

Sam was about to reload when Blake suddenly lunged at him, closing his jaws around him and dragged him out. Sam yelped in surprise and fear and reached out his hands. Bentley tried to grab one of them but was met with the sheriffs revolver. He stared into the muzzle and slowly raised his arms, grinning innocently. His eyes flicked to Scrange, despite all the commotion, he was still struggling with the padlock. Good.

"So, sheriff Rango, eh? I've always had a hard time picturin' Rango as a sheriff though..." He said, trying to stall the chameleon. He was very good at stalling people! Rango raised a scaly eyebrow, but didn't answer, so Bentley did what he was best at: talked. "I ain't sure if I should look at yer face or yer gun, officer. Sorry, no offense, but yer eyes are seriously buggin' me out! First I thought that Prissys eyes were creepy. Pretty! But creepy... However yers are off the chart! They're like, everywhere!"

Rango frowned and opened his mouth to say something but quickly shut it again. Instead he grinned and turned one of his eyes to the rat tempering with the lock. "I'm sorry sir, but I'm gonna have to ask you to step away from the cell!"

"Wow, that wasn't creepy at all! Don't stop whatever you're doing, Scrange! I'll take care of this guy!"

The sheriff turned both of his eyes back at the hyena. So, this was Bentley, huh? Wonder what it was with this guy that could make Priscilla leave the town? Kinda tall, looked strong, Mississippi accent, excessive movements, way too many facial expressions and underneath a thick mess of hair hid a pair of eyes that more likely would belong to anyone else rather than an outlaw. Not to mention a mouth that never stopped chatting... Wouldn't exactly strike him as her type.

"That scarf..." Rango said and nodded towards the purple scarf around the mans neck. "I've seen it before. It's Priscillas, right?"

"Huh?" Bentley looked down and grinned. "Oh, yeah! Yeah, she gave it to me!"

"She gave it to you?" Rango raised an eyebrow, questioning the man. "You do know it's her lucky charm, right?"

"Yup! An' I gave her MY lucky charm, that's a fair trade innit?" Suddenly he staggered back and his eyes widened. "SWEET MERCIFUL GASTROPODS! WILL YA LOOK AT THE SIZE OF THAT THING!?" He exclaimed and pointed at something behind Rango.

"What?!" Rango quickly snapped around to see what it was the hyena had seen. But as he was staring out at the empty office, seeing Sam and Blake play some sort of cat vs rat game outside the door, he remembered what everyone had said about Bentley: a crazy, laughing prankster who mastered the art of trickery. When he felt someone grab his arm holding the gun and get thrown to the ground while the weapon was forced out of his grip, he cursed himself for falling for the oldest trick in the book.

Next thing the sheriff knew, he was lying on his back with the hyena standing over him, pointing the gun down at his face. Bentley was struggling to keep himself from bursting out in a roaring laughter, but he failed and threw the gun to the rat. "Take this instead Scrangey! Ya don't seem to get anywhere with that! Besides, I think people already knows we're in here anyway!" He laughed and extended a hand to Rango. "Sorry, but I ain't no fan of havin' a gun pointing at my snout. Need a hand?"

Rango pushed himself up to a sitting position and glared suspiciously at his hand. It was probably just another trick. And now, he was unarmed too. A loud bang next to them made them both jump in surprise and turn to the rat. He was standing with the smoking gun in both hands, the padlock destroyed.

"Really, Scrange?" Bentley said and rubbed one of his ears against his shoulder. "Ya couldn't have given us a heads-up first?"

"Sorry!" Scrange snickered and emptied all the gun shells in his hand before handing it back to Bentley, who in turn gave it back to the puzzled sheriff. The coralsnake barged out of the cell, squeezed through the opened window and disappeared squirming into the ground like an earthworm.

"Finally! Let's get outta here! I wanna go back to her now!" Bentley sighed and stretched.

Scrange rolled his eyes. "Really!? You don't think she could manage without you for a couple of hours or so? Really now, mate. Don't you think you're acting the slightest bit paranoid?"

"I ain't paranoid!... Okay, maybe a little... By the way, should we go help Sam out?"

"Nah, he seems to be doin' alright actually!"

While sheriff Rango held a gun pointed at Bentley, Blake had dragged the small bobcat out from the office and spat him out on the main street. Sam quickly got to his feet. He got a few scratches and wounds from the big snakes teeth, but no poison. He stifled a relieved sigh and looked up at the rattlesnake, looming over him with flashing eyes in the same color as fire.

"Blake..." He growled and felt around on the ground, searching for his shotgun. He couldn't find it so he looked around and there it was; 'only' twenty feet away. He quickly got to his feet and were going to make a run for it towards the weapon, but the rattlesnake slammed his tail down between Sam and his weapon, blocking the path.

"Maybe we should settle this now, n' git this nonsense over with?" The rattlesnake said and bared his fangs in an evil grin. Sam buried his hand into the dirt and didn't reply, he just waited for the snake to make a move.

He didn't have to wait long until Blake hissed and dove down head-first with his fangs bared, meaning to bury them deep inside Sams flesh. Sam threw a fistful of sand in the snakes eyes and quickly jumped out of the way. Blake missed and buried his fangs in the ground. He jerked his head back and roared. Sand burned in his eyes and, to add insult to injury, he got a mouthful of it too. While he was pitting and cursing meanwhile he rubbed the sand out of his eyes with his rattle, Sam had thrown himself over his shotgun and aimed it at Blake.

Blake turned around and forced his stinging eyes open when he heard the clicking sound of a hammer getting pulled back. Through the mists of tears that forced their way into his eyes, he saw the small bobcat pointing his gun at him. He froze and stared at Sam with a scared frown. Sam didn't say anything, neither did Blake, and put his finger on the trigger.

_Click!_

Sams heart skipped a beat and he glanced down at his weapon. _Shit! I forgot to reload!_ He cursed to himself and looked back up at the Rattlesnake. The snake was grinning down at him, displaying his fangs.

"Nice one, Sam! Ya nearly had me there for a while!" He hissed and lunged at the bobcat again, only to get a hard hit on the snout with the butt of the shotgun. He hissed again as his head snapped to the side and decided to go with a new strategy; he dove down at the bobcat again but instead of baring his fangs, he just quickly wrapped himself around Sam, before the bobcat could hit the snake back. He was about to bury his fangs in Sam when something small hit him on the head. He spotted the item and growled. It was a freaking apple! "Apples?! WHO the HELL throws APPLES at people?!" He spat and turned his head around, spotting the bountyhunter standing on a wagon filled with various fruits and greens. He was bouncing another apple in his hand while pointing a revolver at Blake.

"Let go of the kid, will ya?" Rango asked and tilted his head.

"Nuh-uh, he threw SAND in my eyes! And you threw an APPLE! I should finish ya BOTH off!" He said and squeezed the cat. Sam forced his mouth shut as he felt the air getting squeezed out of his lungs.

"Alright then!" Rango pulled the trigger and Blakes eyes widened when the bullet hit his tail, continuing out the other side. Blake roared and unraveled himself around Sam, brutally throwing him down. Sam hit the ground and gasped for air before scrambling to his feet with the shotgun in a hard grip. "Get new shells in that thing! Hicks' got some I think, but ya have to hurry, he's about to climb up the watertower!" Rango waved his gun at the watertower before he had to jump off the wagon to get out of the way for the furious Blake.

"STOP jumpin' 'round ya ol' piece of YEEOOWCH!" The snake did a sweeping movement with his tail to knock the dodging lizard down, but accidentally hit the side of the sheriffs building, which sent a jolt of pain through his damaged tail and left some blood splattered on the window.

Bentley just poked his head out through the window and had to jerk back with a loud yelp to not get hit by the snakes blood. "Diiisgusting!"

Jake cocked his gun and clenched his fangs together as he looked up at the bird, sitting on top of the saloon sign. He just sat there looking at the snakes. However, if they would try to shoot him; he would be up in the blue in a matter of milliseconds. He seemed to be able to tell what they were going to do by just studying them. And it made Jake furious.

"What're we gonna do, Jake?" Jolene asked and looked at her brother with a worried frown. If they were to succeed in defeating these thugs, they were going to need Jake out there. But as long as the eagle were circulating the area, there was no way Jake would leave his safe spot underneath the watertower. She gritted her teeth. _Stupid big brother! Why would he go an' git himself attacked by that darn hawk in the first place!?_

Jake opened his mouth to answer when he in the corner of his eyes saw someone come bolting towards them; the coyote.

"What the...?" Jolene exclaimed as Jake whipped out his gatlin and fired away at the coyote. "Isn't that Hicks?" Hick the coyote threw himself in behind an empty barrel to get away from the bullets.

"That's Hicks alright..." Jake growled and stopped shooting for a while, waiting for the coyote to reappear.

As on a given signal, the eagle cried out again, swooped down from the saloons sign and started clawing at the snake covering underneath the tower. Jolene hissed and shot at the bird, trying to get it to keep it's distance. The bullet grazed one of the feathers on his headgear, which enraged the bird and he switched target to Jolene.

"Eeek!" Jolene yelped, dodged for the razorsharp beak and scurried into the already crammed space under the tower. "Move over will ya, fatty?"

"ME!? I was here first!"

Hicks used the distraction to make a dash towards the tower and climb up the ladder, leading to the platform around the container. From the platform he continued up another ladder, right into the basin. Considering that they had an entire lake to their disposal, they only kept the water tower for sentimental reasons. The container was empty, except for some crates with dynamite and something big and bumble covered under a large cloth. Hicks grinned to himself. Those darn farmers hadn't found it yet.

Bentley stared with an empty gaze at the blood splattered on the window and the walls.

_Bang. Splat. Blood everywhere. Déja vù. Damn flashbacks... Father..._

"C'mon, Bentley! We have let Rango know Coral is out so we can leave!" Scrange gave him a weak punch on the arm to bring him back to reality. "You were the one in a hurry, remember?"

"Where did Rango leave Prissys guns?!" Bentley said suddenly.

Scrange flinched. "What?"

Sheriff Rango blinked in confusion. _She don't have her guns? Why didn't she bring her guns along?She NEVER leaves her guns anywhere!_ He slowly got to his feet and glanced down at his revolver. The rat had emptied it. Totally useless now. And he didn't have any spare bullets in neither his pockets nor his belt. He looked back at the two outlaws. He didn't have any useable weapons, but he had to stop those two somehow!

"Uh, you two!" Rango spoke up and pointed at the outlaws. They turned around to him looking surprised, they probably even forgot that the sheriff was there. He cleared his throat, trying to sound as authorizing as possible. "Y-you two along with yer comrades are now put under arrest for the siege of the town of Dirt, the murder of several townspeople; mayor Ambrose, Mr Black, Phillip Edwards just to point out a few. Then I put you under arrest for several other things which it would probably take all day for me to count up! You have the right to remain silent, everythin' you say can and will be..." The hyena couldn't contain it anymore and doubled over with hysterical laughter. Sheriff Rango frowned. "What's so funny?"

"S-sorry!" Bentley snorted out between the laugh attacks. "Ya just sound so funny!"

The rat sighed and rolled his eyes. "Sorry about this chap, he does like this sometimes..." He said and grabbed his friends arm. "Come along now, Bentley!"

"N-no wait, ya go and tell Rango. Oh, and tell him I'll be right with ya guys!" The hyena threw his leg over the windowsill and was about to climb over.

"Hey! You can't go! I'm putting you under arrest!" Sheriff Rango tried to stop them, but all he got was a raised eyebrow from the rat.

"Yeah, good luck with that!" Bentley said and jumped down on the ground, shortly followed by Scrange. Bentley however, continued to climb up on the roof of the sheriffs office and make his way to the hotel, hoping to find a route to the saloon without any fighters.

Scrange sighed and turned to the main street. At the furthest end, Rango and Sam were both fighting against Blake in a display of evasive skills. It was going to be hard to give the news to Rango like this.

Running on the rooftops gave Bentley a wider view of the town, however it also made him an easy target. Thomas soon noticed the hyena and fired away at him with his four guns; one in each hand.

"Ya shoot like ya smell: BAD!" Bentley couldn't help but to shout at the cockroach, however it caused some more people to turn their heads up towards the roofs and before he knew it; he had at least ten guns aimed at him. "Whoopsie!"

But when dodging for a bullet that were dangerously close to his nose, the scarf around his neck untied itself and slowly, gracefully floated down to the streets below.

He managed to get around the town without getting shot, even though one bullet managed to graze at his ear, ripping off some fur and skin. And since Coral appeared and joined the fight, it would seem like Scrange wouldn't have to tell Rango about her escape.

Bentley sneaked into the saloon via the backside. The saloon would be a great place to start looking, this is where Rango kept most things after all! He was about to run up the stairs when he heard something. He stood completely still with a hand on the rail and his ears perked up, listening.

There it was again! It sounded almost like a muffled sob.

His ears flicked and he looked around. The saloon was empty; everyone was out fighting on the streets. Yet, the sound coming from behind the counter must've come from a person. He carefully sneaked up to the counter and looked down. At first he didn't see anything, but then he noticed a small figure huddled up underneath the desk. He jumped over the counter and came face to face with the little person: a very young kangaroo rat, a child.

"Hey, what're ya doin' here, kiddo?" Bentley asked and grinned, kneeling down before her. She gasped and pressed her back against the counter. "C'mon now! Don't be scared! I ain't gonna bite ya!" Bentley tilted his head. "I think I know ya, you're one of them Edwards kids, right?" The kangaroo mouse nodded slowly, almost unnoticeable. "Gee, I'm mighty sorry 'bout yer brother..." The hyenas large ears drooped. "But y'know Rango, sometimes he can get a bit outta control, but he IS a pretty swell guy! Believe it or not!"

Suddenly he heard the sound of a rifle getting cocked above his head and a feminine voice said: "I don't believe it!" He looked up and saw Beans pointing a sawed off shotgun at him from the other side of the counter.

"Beans, right?" He chuckled. "Best. Name. Ever!"

Beans wasn't amused; she growled and did a wave with the shotgun. "Git up!"

Bentley slowly got up from the floor with his hands raised. "Ay, listen miss Lima, I'm just here to look for a couple of things! I'll be outta yer hair in no time! In a figure of speech..." He chuckled nervously and stared into the muzzle. "So, if you'd be so kind and remove that toy of yers outta my face, then I could just..." Suddenly the little girl got up from under the counter and kicked him as hard as she could on his shin before skipping over the counter to hide behind Beans. Bentley was yelping in pain and jumped around on his other foot, his hands clutching his pained leg. "That was TOTALLY uncalled for! Not okay! NOT okay!" He whimpered and nearly knocked a bunch of bottles down to the floor.

The little girl pointed her tongue at him and Beans chuckled. "Good job, Mattie!" She said and lovingly stroked the girl over her hair.

"No! NO good job, Mattie!" Bentley pouted when he was forced to hold his hands up again by the desert lizard.

"Alright, mister, git over here. Slowly! No hasty movements or I'll repaint this saloon with yer brains!" Beans pointed her shotgun straight at Bentley and growled.

He flinched. "Eww, really? That's just gross, lady! Gross!" Suddenly his eyes widened and he staggered back in fear, pointing a shaky finger at something behind her. "HOLY FLYIN' SPAGHETTIMONSTER, WHAT'S THAT?!" Beans didn't even budge. She just simply raised an eyebrow at him. He blinked in confusion. "Huh? That's strange? It worked on the sheriff..."

"Git a move on!" She hissed and put her finger on the trigger.

"Really?" He tilted his head. "Ya really gonna shoot me?"

"Just be happy it's me pullin' the trigger. I always kill immediately, the others however..." She nodded her head towards the door behind her. "They might just hurt ya an' let ya slowly die from blood loss, after they cut ya up like a fish!"

"AURGH! Ya people are GROSS!" Bentley did a repulsed grimace. "Besides, I ain't buyin' it!" He crossed his arms. "Prissy's told me 'bout ya guys! Ya always sound worse than ya really are!"

"Bad news, she was lyin' to ya!" Beans took a couple of steps forward, the hyena didn't budge.

"Maybe, maybe not. But listen here..." He let his hands fall to his sides. "I'm lookin' for a pair of Colt .45's, also known as Peacemakers. Silver alloy, ebony handles. Ya haven't seen them somewhere 'round?" Beans shook her head and tightened the grip of the shotgun. "Oh... alright..." His ears drooped slightly. "Um, if I put it like this then, I'm lookin' for Prissys guns..." He mumbled and moved his eyes to the floor. "Rango didn't have time to return them to her, an' I know she'd be safer with them 'round. At least it would make me feel less... worried!"

Beans slowly lowered the shotgun with a frown. "Ya really do care 'bout her, do ya?"

"Of course I do!" He looked up at her from under his dark bangs. "Besides, our job here is done. We're gonna leave as soon as possible. But I don't think they'll leave as long as I'm gone though. It's sort of like a policy we got, 'one for all an' all for one', y'know? So if ya want us to piss off as soon as possible, then just let me go. Let me fetch the guns and we'll all get lost in ten seconds flat"

Beans threw the gun over her shoulder and put a hand on her hip. "But what's the point? Y'all be back here in a few days anyhow!"

He shrugged. "Yeah, that's true. But we ain't out to hurt nobody this time!"

The desert lizard put her hand on her chin, pondered for a while. Eventually she threw her hand out and sighed. "I've gotta be crazy! Go!" She made a shooing motion with her hand.

His ears perked up. "Really?!"

"Go! The room to the far left is locked, an' we haven't got the door unlocked yet. They could be in there!"

"HAH-HAH!" He laughed victoriously and leaped over the counter and bolted up the stairs.

"But in five minutes we'll come up there!" She shouted after him up the stairs.

"Thanks! I owe ya one!"

Mattie pulled at Beans' dress and looked up at the lizard with a frown. "Miss Beans! Why did'ya let 'im go?! Why didn't ya shoot 'im?"

Beans sighed and shook her head. "Because I'm starting to become an sentimental old woman, that's why..."

"But, you're not old!"

"No, maybe not yet, but soon!"

Meanwhile, Rango and Sam were both busy holding the pissed off Blake away, both thanked their lucky star that Jolene and Jake were busy fighting with Thunder Wing.

Things didn't seem to go anywhere for either of them; Rango and Sam dodged for Blakes fangs and tail, Blake did his best to cause harm to the two evasive adversaries.

However, when Arrow tried to interfere, Rango stopped to send the bird away. Blake saw his moment and turned away from the bobcat he was trying to bite at the moment and threw out his tail. Rango tried to jump out of the way and got sent soaring through the air by the impact when Blakes tail made a connection with Rangos body. The revolver got knocked out of his hand and skidded to a stop outside the wagon Sam was covering under.

Rango turned around on his back and looked at the snake with wide-opened eyes. Arrow hissed and placed herself between her master and the snake in her battle-stance; feathers ruffled, head held low and the wings held out from her body, staring at the snake with flashing bright yellow eyes.

"Get outta here, Arrow!" Rango yelled at the bird and tried to get up on his feet.

Blake laughed menacingly and loomed over the roadrunner and the lizard, his dark tongue playing. He was about to throw himself over the pair when four shots echoed through the town.

Blakes body tensed up and he got a shocked expression on his face before falling to the ground right next to Rango and Arrow. The snake looked down at his chest, were blood began to run out from four small holes. Further away stood Sam, he held the revolver with both of his trembling hands.

"Nice shot!" Rango praised and leaned on Arrow for support.

Sam nodded and just stared at the snake he shot. Blake was still alive and breathed heavily, even though every breath sent a flash of pain in his chest, causing him to twitch. Strange. He thought that avenging Belle would make him feel... relieved. Content! But instead, he got a weird, gnawing feeling in his guts. The kind of feeling you get when you just did something wrong, and you know it. Something horribly wrong.

Rango unraveled a lasso from Arrows saddle and staggered up to the snake. "Sorry 'bout this kiddo, but I need some proof for the authorities that the Vampire of the West finally got brought down!" He said and tied one end of the lasso around one of Blakes fangs. A cold hand gripped Blakes heart as he followed the rope with his eyes to the other end. It was tied to Arrows saddlehorn. "Arrow! Go!" He hollered and the bird obeyed, dashing off as fast as she could.

"N-NO!" Blake shrieked right before the rope tensed. He got dragged a few inches before his fang were jerked out from his mouth with a wet _snap_!

The scream emitting from Blake was terrifying, loud enough to make the windows shake in the nearby windows. Rango shivered and looked back at Arrow, who stood at the other end of town, with the rope dragging behind her. At the end of the rope was their gruesome price: a bloody fang. Blake was screaming with pain, violently trashing about in a blind fury, crashing into buildings and leveling everything nearby with the ground.

The door on the top floor of the saloon were easier to kick down than the one in the sheriffs office. But just as the door fell to the floor, four shots echoed. These shots sounded different, almost a bit louder than usual. They hit something big that fell to the ground, and a few seconds later, a bloodcurling scream from Blake made the windows shake. Bentley flattened his ears. That was probably the signal for them to get the hell out. _Better find her guns, FAST!_

Another shriek was heard and Rango snapped around. It was Jolene. She darted out from the watertower and slithered as fast as she could to reach her brother, tears of panic running down from her eyes.

Sheriff Rango darted out from the sheriffs office, staring wide-eyed at the aftermath of the scene that just happened.

"ARROW!" The bountyhunter Rango hollered, calling for the bird. She chirped and turned around to return to her master. " LET'S GET OUTTA HERE! HICKS! SCRANGE! PORCUPINES! BENTLEY!" He grabbed the saddlehorn and were about to throw himself up in the saddle when Scrange came with their roadrunners dragging behind him. Hicks were next to come running from the watertower, careful when running around Jolene and Blake. She held her wounded brother in her coils. Sobbing, weeping, begging him to stay with them. Rango snorted and jumped up in Arrows saddle.

"Errm, Rango. You wouldn't mind waiting a few minutes?" Scrange said and gulped, knowing that Rango wouldn't be happy to hear this.

"Why should we?! And where the hell is Bentley?!" He looked around as they were joined with the porcupine brothers. Fledge had a nasty gash on his chin, which had stained blood on his colorful poncho, other than that they seemed unharmed.

"Umm, that's the thing sir. You see, he has gone to the saloon, t-to look for miss Priscillas guns!"

Rango opened his mouth to scream, probably something extremely foul about hyenas, when several, rapid shots from a gatlin were fired at something, shortly followed by a birds scream. Thunder Wing came tumbling down from the skies, bullets lodged in his legs. He managed to straighten himself up before crashing into his friends and screamed as he turned around. Leaving the town. And with the big bird finally out of the way, nothing could stop the by now beyond furious Rattlesnake-Jake. But first he stopped next to sheriff Rango. Shouting something at the little chameleon.

"For cryin' out loud, BEENTLEEEY!" Rango shouted, just as someone came bolting out on the saloons balcony and jumped off the old rail. Bentley landed heavily on the ground, rolled on his shoulder and staggered to his feet.

"Heree!" He reached up his hand and grinned widely.

"Get. On. The bird. NOW!" Rango hissed through his clenched teeth and pointed stiffly at Grumpy.

"Alright, alright..." The hyena pouted, hurt by the cold greeting and jumped up on his roadrunner. The gang finally got moving just when sheriff Rango and Jake started to chase after them. Suddenly Jake stopped and fired away at the outlaws. Arrow did an unexpected buck to the side and the unprepared Rango fell off. Hicks saw and held his roadrunner back and turned to his companion.

Rango staggered to his feet and grabbed Arrows reins, not noticing how strained she was breathing. "Go! We'll catch up!" He said and waved to the coyote to continue. Hicks nodded and turned back to the group. Rango turned to his bird. "We've gotta buy 'em some time. Meet me at the other side of the lake, understand?" Arrow did a short nod and Rango couldn't help but to smile. Amazing how this roadrunner was smarter than all of Jonas' men together. Arrow darted of with the fang trailing behind her, still tied to the rope and Rango turned to the two reptilians getting closer and closer. "HEY! SHERIFF! JACOB! HERE I AM!" He waved his arms above his head and dashed off towards the lake. Jake snarled and followed the lizard with the sheriff trailing behind him.

Sheriff Rango frowned when he saw the clear blue water surface. "H-he's heading t-towards the lake?!" He huffed while trying to keep up with the snake. "W-we've got h-him n-now Jake!"

"No!" Jake growled and skidded to a stop just as the outlaw were getting closer to the water. He cursed and raised his gun, firing away at the lizard. But instead of slowing down, the outlaw seemed to speed up. The sheriffs jaw dropped as the other Rango kept running. Even as he hit the water.

That bastard was running on the water!

"NO!" Jake growled even louder and fired his gatlin rattle at the outlaw, bullets hitting the water around the lizards feet. That seemed to be enough to disrupt his concentration as Rango fell down under the surface after getting about halfway. Jake kept firing until he ran out of ammo. Not until his weapon silence, the lizard poked his head up over the surface and swam the last distance to the opposite beach. There he lied for a few seconds, panting, until he got up and, waited for his roadrunner to arrive.

Arrow arrived, Rango threw himself up in the saddle and so the pair disappeared off into the wilderness. Jake roared in defeat and turned back to the town.

"D-did ya just see that?! H-he was running on water! Who does he think he is, Jesus?" Sheriff Rango stuttered and waved at the lake.

"He's a basilisk..." The snake growled and went silent as he came out on the street again, his eyes darting to his two younger siblings, practically bathing in Blakes blood.

"BLAKE! NO! J-just DON'T worry! I-I'll take care of ya, lil' brother!" Jolene sobbed with her eyes full of tears as she huddled up together with her brother in her coils, pressing her forehead against his.

Blake had stopped trashing around and was now lying in his sisters embrace, wincing in pain with tears rolling down his cheeks. Blood was gushing out from the bulletwounds and the hole where his fang once were, filling his mouth with his own blood and forcing him to spit and gurgle every fifth second. Rango bit his lip and put his hand over his eyes. He never wanted to see something like this again.

Jolene looked up at Jake. "J-JACOB! D-do something! H-he's... He's..." Her voice failed her and she started to tear up. "He's gonna DIE! JACOB!"

Rango glanced up at the big snake and flinched. Jake stared down at the ground, his jaws clenched together and one single, silver shining tear rolling down his cheek and dropping down on the ground to get soaked up by the dry sand. "For fuck sake... Ya stupid lil' fool!"

…

**Umm... Yeah. I apologize to every Blake-fan out there. Sorry...**

**Anyway, I'm surprised how easy these chapters has been to write, while I'm totally STUCK with ROTH -.-... ARGH!**

…

**Must be Blake cursing me? Sorry 'bout the tooth, ol' boy :(... sacrifices needs to be made every now and then y'know...**

**Anyway, I hope y'all will be back to check on poor Blakey in the next chapter! **

**See y'all!**


	37. Why?

**Howdy y'all! Glad you're back, despite Blakes little... accident...**

**So, I bet you're all curious if that little bugger is gonna make it or not? Well so far he's not dead, so let's keep our fingers crossed ^^...  
**

**Btw, we're going to a cabin without internet during the holidays (and we're bringing our animals with us... ALL of them :D! Sure, they're only four, but still x)), so I won't be able to update until we come back :(... But don't worry, it'll probably be two or three chapters by then ;)! And hopefully the next ROTH chapter! Still writing on it... grr...  
**

**This is a pretty short chapter, sorry... But if its to any comfort: it's the first chapter entirely with the snakes, enjoy ;)!  
**

***** Chapter Thirtyseven : Why? *****

The lithe female diamondback was nervously pacing back and forth on the street outside Docs office. Her eyes were puffy and swollen with tears and she would occasionally let out a small sob or a whimper as she paced. Every time a cry of pain or a squeal was heard from the office, she would snap around and consider barging in through the doors to save her little brother.

"Relax, Jolene. Doc's takin' care of him! There ain't no better doctor than our Doc! At least not 'round this territory!" Beans tried to comfort the snake and handed her a bed sheet to wipe her tears with.

Jolene waved it away. "This is all my fault!" She sobbed and closed her eyes. "I-I should've looked after him better! If he dies, t-then it's b'cause of m-me!"

"But he ain't gonna die, Jo!" A much bigger diamondback hissed from the shadows of an empty shack. "Y'know how stubborn Blake is! He ain't gonna die anytime soon..." Jake said, but if it was to ensure his sister or himself was left to debate.

"I-I hope you're right, Jake..." She sniveled and glanced through one of the murky windows. It was hard to see through, but she was guessing that they were trying to remove the bullets. Another scream was heard as Doc shoved a pair of pincers down into the deep wound and dug around for the bullet. Jolene clenched her eyes shut to shut the scream out.

Suddenly the scream silenced and not a sound was heard for a long time. Jolene stiffened and listened med a nervously throbbing heart, fearing the worst. Eventually, after what seemed like an eternity, Doc came out shortly followed by Mr Edwards and Rango, who looked even greener than usual.

"Well?!" She said impatiently with an unnaturally high pitched voice.

"Well, we've got some good news, and some bad news..." Doc answered and scratched what was left of his one of his long ears with a bloody hand.

"Let's take the bad ones first, to git it over with!" Jake rumbled and got out from the shade.

"Very well, I'm gonna be completely honest with ya, folks..." Doc slapped his paws together and slowly shook his head. "He has lost a LOT of blood, one of his lungs were nearly punctured n' I'm not entirely sure how great his chances of survival is..."

Jakes blood red eyes flashed angrily and he quickly wrapped himself around the doctor. "Don't ya DARE to say that again!" The rattlesnake spat. "He WILL make it!"

"W-well, t-theres... still... t-the good news... l-left!" Jake eased his grip a bit to allow the one eared jackrabbit to speak unhindered. He drew a few deep breaths before continuing; "As I said, I ain't sure how great his chances of survival is BUT we've managed to stop the bleedin'! So if he makes it through the night, then I'd say that his chances are pretty big!"

Jake snickered and let go of Doc, the old jackrabbit fell to the ground in a pile, before slithering back to his shade. Now it was Jolenes turn to slither up to the doctor, although her approach wasn't as aggressive.

"I-is there anythin' I can do?" She stuttered carefully.

Doc shrugged. "He's unconscious right now, it really took all 'is powers to scream n' holler like that while we were performin' the operation." He looked back at his office. "But I reckon what ya can do is keepin' him company through the night. I doubt he'll even know you're there, but it wouldn't hurt" He stepped out of the way and allowed the snake to slither in through the door. She stopped in the doorway and turned back to Doc.

"T-thank ya so much, Doc!" She smiled faintly.

The jackrabbit returned the smile. "No sweat, miss!"

Rango turned to Mr Edwards. "T-Taylor... I-I think I'm gonna..." He didn't get further until his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell backwards. Luckily the kangaroo rat managed to catch the sheriff and gently put him down on the ground.

Beans rushed up to him. "Rango! He ain't hurt, is he?" She asked with a worried frown and grabbed the sheriffs limp hand.

"Nah, but I'm surprised he lasted this long! Ya should've seen him when Doc was diggin' 'round in that snake" Mr Edwards chuckled. "Sheriff Rango looked like he would throw up any second!"

Jolene took a look around in the office before she got to the big room, where the operations, autopsies etc, were performed, and where her brother now was lying on a pile of sheets. To get the large snake in here, they first had to move out most of the furniture and place them on the outside. And even then, it was still a little too tight to get Blake through, so they had to saw away big chunks of the doorways too.

Jolene had to blink a few tears away. All their efforts just to save her brother. There had to be some way she could repay the sheriff and his town, but how?!

She poked her head into the room and saw her brother, lying in a C-shape on the now bloodstained sheets. She clenched her jaw together and slithered in. Blake seemed to notice that someone got closer to him, as his body jerked involuntarily and he let out a soft whimper.

"Hey, little brother..." She whispered softly and nudged his head with her snout. He looked so... pathetic; bandaged like a mummy from what would be the waist all the way to his neck. They had even wrapped a bandage around his upper jaw and over the gaping hole where his fang had been just a few hours ago. His fangs, his pride and joy... How they managed to wrap him up like that without getting hurt was a mystery.

As he lied there, she couldn't help but to smile. This reminded her of another time, a long, long time ago. They had been playing around in a mesquite, Blake, their friend Mary-Anne and her, when Blake got stung by a thorn. Mesquite thorns are poisonous, and the younger the victim, the more dangerous it could get. But luckily Harvey had been nearby. He pulled out the thorn and sent the two young snakes and the basilisk back home ASAP to their mothers, who of course went ballistic when she heard about Blake.

Blake spent the night in fever chills, curled up in his bed and trembling like a leaf. But Jolene wouldn't leave his side. All night she would stay rolled up next to him, making sure he didn't get worse.

This time it looked like it would be another night like that.

She sighed and rolled into a bun next to him and squirmed her head under his, letting his head rest on her neck. Blake whimpered in pain and flopped restlessly.

"It's alright Blake! It's just me, Jolene! Y'know, yer ol' sister Jo!" She said, trying to calm her brother down. Blake tensed up, but then relaxed, his head resting heavily on her neck.

She smiled sadly and rested her own head on the floor when she heard the rustling sound of scales getting dragged over wooden floor. Her head perked up slightly. "Jacob?"

Her big brother poked his head in through the doorway. "How's he holdin' up?" He asked, short and straight to the point.

"I dunno..." She shook her head. "He's in pretty bad shape, though..." She clenched her teeth together to stop the tears burning behind her eyelids. _Enough cryin' already, girl! _Jake cursed and closed his eyes. "I-I just don't understand..."

Jolenes voice made him open his eyes again and he tilted her head towards her. "Huh?"

"H-how could he do this to us?! How could Durango do this to Blake!?" She sobbed. "H-he's our friend, isn't he?! H-he's always been there, WHY did he do this?! I-I know what Blake did to Coral was bad... But how could he have known that she was..." She interrupted herself before her voice broke.

Jake didn't answer at once, just stared at the floor. "It's true... Durango was our friend..." Jolene stopped sobbing and looked at her brother with a confused look. "But it seems like he was talkin' the truth when he said Durango died..." He looked up at his sister. "Durango is dead, Jo. Durango's always been dead. The man who almost killed our brother is Rango. And Rango ain't like our friend!" He hissed and turned around, slithering out through to the street.

Jolene looked after her brother as he left through the door, shaking her head slowly before putting her head down again. "You're wrong Jake... Durango ain't dead..." She said and her eyes flashed angrily and added with a cold hiss; "Not yet!"

Suddenly Blake groaned and one of his eyes slowly opened, looking at his sister with a lifeless eye. "Jo... lene?" He whispered.

"Yup! It's me!" Jolene nudged her snout against him.

"Jo... It hurts..."

"I know, Blake... I know... But dont'ya worry! I'll be right here ALL night!"

Blake didn't answer. He just closed his eye and went back to his restless sleep. Jolene sighed. She closed her eyes too and was lulled to sleep by the thought of holding Durango in her coils; slowly and painfully squeezing the life out of him.

Jake had returned to the lake and was staring out at the surface. The sun was setting, igniting the sky in an inferno of pink, purple and red, which was reflected in the lake.

He clenched his jaws together at the memory of the bountyhunter, darting over the water. Even with Jake firing at him, he still managed to get pretty far. _He's sure got better at it, hasn't he?_ He thought to himself. _But tricks like that won't save him when I have him in my grasp..._

"Errm, mister Jake?" A tiny, squeaky voice said and he felt someone poke at his scales.

He hissed and turned around with his gun readied.

Below him was the little kangaroo rat, Mattie Edwards. "What?" He spat and raised an eyebrow.

"Sheriff Rango's gatherin' erryone at the water tower! He says he's got somethin' to show y'all!" Mattie waved with her hand, signaling for the snake to follow her as she ran back into town. Jake rolled his eyes and slithered after the child.

_This better be good..._

**Sorry for the short chapter, wish I could've made it longer but the writers block struck again and well... Yeah -.-...  
**

**Anyway, so Blake is alive, barely, but still alive! But will he survive :P? Dum-dum-dummmm! **

**Nah, sorry, that was a bit mean... **

**Anyway, see y'all next chapter and HAVE A MERRY X-MAS EVERYONE WHO CELEBRATES IT :D!**

**OR HANUKKAH! OR KWANZAA! Or whatever you do to pass time during the winter xD!**

**Delilah OUT!**


	38. The true Spirit of the West

**Aaand, we're back :D! I hope everyone's had an awesome holiday, mine sure was :D!  
**

**So, I managed to finish TWO chapters :D! Here's the first one, enjoy ;)!  
**

***** Chapter Thirtyeight : The TRUE Spirit of the West! *****

The gang of outlaws took a hasty five minutes breather by the gorge of the Crystal Canyon so Rango could haul in the fang trailing behind his roadrunner in a rope. Arrow was breathing heavy and seemed more tired than she should be.

"Are ya okay, Arrow?" He asked, and got a nod and a chirp from the bird. He took that as a yes and so they continued down the steep hills. They hadn't spotted Thunder Wing since they left Dirt behind, but they were all hoping that he would show up. Hopefully okay and just mildly angry.

Bentley yawned and twisted his neck so a low crackling noise was heard, sending shivers down Scranges spine. Bentley laughed at the rats reaction and did the same thing with his fingers.

"Will you stop that?" Scrange hissed and turned his head to his friends direction. "That sound is the most... Huh?" He blinked and his whiskers twitched.

"The most 'huh'?" Bentley frowned. "... And ya tell me that I don't make any sense!"

"Haven't you noticed that you've lost something?" The rat cocked an eyebrow at the clueless hyena.

"Eh?" Bentley tilted his head. "If you're implyin' on my mind again I can actually tell ya that...!" Scrange interrupted him with a motion towards the neck. The hyena fumbled with his hands around his own neck and was about to come with another witty remark when he found out that something actually was missing, except for a few screws. He looked down and discovered to his horror that Priscillas scarf was missing. "CRAP! HICKS!" He made Grumpy come to a complete halt, ruining the birds day even more than it already was.

Hicks heard Bentleys outburst and stopped his own roadrunner, turning around back to the outlaw. "What's the matter now?" He growled as the rest of the gang came to a halt.

"I-I've gotta go back there! I must've dropped Prissy's scarf or somethin', she's gonna KILL me!"

"No you ain't! An' that's just what the snake's are gonna do too, y'know!" Rango answered before Hicks could open his mouth. "And it'll probably be worse to get killed by them than by her, dont'ya think?"

"B-but...!"

"Ya found 'er guns, didn't ya?" Hicks asked while holding his impatient roadrunner back.

"Yeah, but...!"

"Then we reckon ya got nothin' to worry 'bout!" Rango threw his hands out. "See it as a trade between a scarf for two not-too-shabby revolvers! I'd EASILY make a trade like that!" He gestured at the black scarf around his neck.

Bentleys ears drooped. He opened his mouth to say something, but quickly changed his mind. "If I say 'but' one more time, you'll just interrupt me, right?"

"Yep!" Rango and Hicks said at the same time.

Bentley raised an eyebrow and drew a quick breath before speaking as fast as he could to avoid getting interrupted: "... They'rebothalreadyherguns, nomatterhowyatwistorturnitI'mstilljustreturnin'emtoher!"

Hicks looked puzzled as he could make out a single word of what his companion said, while Rango seemed to at least grasp what it was he was trying to say. "Sure, that might be true, but you're still NOT goin' back there riskin' everyones lives just for some stupid scarf!"

"Hey! It ain't stupid!"

"Fine then, I'm sorry, but if ya turn 'round an' goes back to Dirt..." Rango pulled out one of his guns. "Then I won't have any choice but to put a bullet in any of either yer or yer birds limbs. An' I really hate it when I have to hurt one of my own!"

Everybody flinched, even Hicks. "Rango, just calm down!" Hicks said and placed himself in between Rango and Bentley. "We've won today, remember? Let just get back to the Nest as fast as possible. Ya too, Bentley!"

Bentley lowered his head and nodded. Rango must be pissed off if he pulled out his gun at him, and he would only go pointing his guns at someone when he was angry! He probably wouldn't actually shoot him, but still; it was the thought the count...

Without any further distractions, the gang finally arrived to the Nest. Where they were greeted by a cheering Jonas, together with his two closest men: Jeff and Larry. Jeff was a hedgehog while Larry a jackrabbit. Both were pretty much big spineless buttkissers.

"Jo were suksessfull, Aj presum?" Jonas cocked his head and replied with a laughter when Rango showed him Blakes blood encrusted fang.

Suddenly Coral resurfaced from the ground and tried to shake some dirt out of her ear.

"Howdy Coral! Good to have ya back!" Rango tapped his hat at the coralsnake, who nodded and smiled back. But when he turned his back to her, her smile vanished and was replaced with a worried frown as she saw the fang in Rangos hand. Blakes fang. She had seen him get shot, she had heard him scream and see him trash around in a berserk frenzy. Good thing his sister rushed to him, or Coral might've gone to him herself! She turned her eyes to the ground.

Jeff, Larry and a couple of other randomly picked men, including a young gray squirrel who Arrow chirped happily when she saw, came to lead the roadrunners into the stable just as Priscilla walked up to the group. She had a part of her hair combed to cover one side of her face and strange bruises around her throat. Bentley felt his stomach turn worriedly and lump being formed in his throat.

"I hope y'all had yer fun now!" She pouted and crossed her arms. "Another had to spend her time havin' a starin' contest with the wall!"

"W-who won then?" Bentley couldn't help to ask, although the lump in his throat caused him to stutter it.

Priss turned to him and shrugged. "I think the wall did. I fell asleep b'cause of boredom!" He snorted out a laugh and walked up to her, his hands around his back.

"Close yer eyes!" He said with a mischievous grin.

She raised an eyebrow. "Why?" She didn't trust that grin. Not one bit.

"Just do it! Trust me, it'll be fun!"

She sighed and rolled her eyes before closing them shut. She felt him walk around to her backside and throw his arms around her waist. She stifled a laughter. _Really? For a hug?_ But then she felt pressure being put around her hips. She frowned, still with her eyes closed. "Bentley?"

"No peekin'!" Was the answer she got. Whatever he put around her hips sure had some weight to it. She sighed. She knew she couldn't trust him when he was grinning like that! "Alright, open them blue ones, errm, I mean yellow ones!" He said and she felt him step back and go back around to her front side. She immediately sprung her eyes open and stared down at her old revolver belt, with two holsters containing a matching pair of Peacemakers. She gasped and her eyes widened as she pulled one of them out, opened the cylinder and gave it a spin before clicking it shut again.

She was speechless with gratitude. "Bentley, I-I... I-I mean... How...? W-where...?" She tried to stutter forth complete sentences, but failed miserably so she decided to just throw herself around his neck, giving him a hug that would put a boa constrictor to shame. "T-thanks!" She managed to hoarsely whisper.

"Anytime, Prissy!" He returned the hug, glancing down at the markings around her neck. They WERE bruises, weren't they? It looked just like someone had tried to strangle her? He gritted his teeth and flattened his ears before leaning his head on hers. _ Dont'ya worry, Prissy. Whoever did it WILL pay... And we ain't talkin' 'bout IOU's!_

Jonas turned his head to Rango. "So, Aj take it everyone's okaj, or?"

"Pretty much, I'm a lil' bit surprised everythin' went better than expected. Fledge's got a pretty nasty lookin' gash, but I'm sure it's not as bad as it looks" Rango shrugged.

Jonas glanced down at the fang in the lizards hands. "Vas that really necessary?" He nodded to it.

Rango also looked down at it and shrugged again. "Well, I've gotta have some way to prove that Blake's dead. Usually I bring the whole bodies to nearest town, but in this case a full grown rattlesnake would be pretty much impossible to drag 'round with"

Jonas nodded in understanding. "But..." He looked around. "Vere is Tunder Ving? Shouldn't he be back nov?"

Rango frowned and looked at the hatch in the roof. His friend was right. He SHOULD be back now! He should've been back even BEFORE they arrived! "I ain't sure, but we saw him leave right before we did..." He paused for a while, recalling something. "He might've been shot by Jake. But he should've made it back here at least!"

But just as the bountyhunter finished the sentence, a surprised yell followed by the scratching of claws and a rustling _thud_ came from the stable.

"Eh, MR RANGO! Mr Rango, come! Quick!" The young gray squirrel called Victor called from the stables. Victor was one of the few people that Arrow allowed to touch her, mostly because he helped Rango to take care of her once when she twisted her leg.

Rango frowned and turned to the stable. "What's wrong, Vic?"

The squirrel poked his head out. "I-It's Arrow, sir! I-I think she's hurt!"

The rest of the outlaw gang stopped whatever it was they were doing and stared at the stable. Flitch had been stitching Fledges cheek up and was standing with the needle halfway through the skin, staring with wide eyes. Fledge whined something in Spanish, probably complaining about the needle in his cheek.

Rangos face grew pale and he bolted towards the stable and through the entrance, only to find that Arrow had collapsed in the middle of the path. Lying on her stomach, one of her wings were stretched out on the path while the other was still tightly pressed against her side. She was breathing hard with her head resting on the ground, her flickering eyes reflecting the pain she felt. Rango grabbed Victor by his collar and pulled him up to his face. "What. HAPPENED?!" He growled.

"I-I dunno!" Victor squeaked and his eyes darting nervously from Rango to Arrow. "She j-just collapsed! I-I thought she walked a-a bit o-odd, a-and then she... She... S-she just collapsed!" He clenched his eyes shut. "I-I'm sorry, Mr Rango! I-I dunno what's wrong, I SWEAR!"

Rango hissed and threw the squirrel down on the ground and ran up to Arrow, kneeling by her and picked up her head in his arms. The rest of the gang had followed him into the stable and Priss helped the trembling squirrel up on his feet.

"Y'alright?" She asked and young Victor nodded, pearls of sweat trickling down his forehead and eyes started to get filled up with tears.

"I'm so sorry, ol' girl, this is my fault, isn't it?" Rango mumbled to the roadrunner and gently stroke her over her beak, continuing to her feathery cheek and down the long neck. When he got to the wing, she did a painful chirp and jerked, pressing the wing closer to her body. He frowned. "What's wrong? The wing? What's wrong with yer wing?" He asked when she nudged her head on his arm, trying to move his hand away from the pained area.

"What's wrong?" Hicks appeared next to the kneeling basilisk.

"I dunno..." Rango gritted his teeth and gingerly moved her wing aside, revealing a deep hole right above her ribcage. Blood was seeping through her feathers and dripped down in small puddle underneath her. The lizards face grew even paler as he gently touched the area around the wound. The bird jerked in pain again. "She's been shot!" He growled and glanced at Hicks.

The group of outlaws moved restlessly and exchanged looks with each other. This was bad. This was very bad!

"Jake?"

Rango didn't answer, he just clenched his teeth together and turned his attention to his bird again. "NOW it's personal..."

In Dirt...

The fighting townspeople, and Mattie, stood around the sheriff in a half circle in front of the watertower. Jolene was the only one missing; she was still by Blakes side. Well, her and Ergyl, who was still somewhere in Praire Dog Territory.

"So, may I have everyone's attention?" Rango was standing on the platform around the great water basin and spoke out to the people below him. Nobody said anything as he already had their attention from the start. The sheriff cleared his throat and continued: "Right before the bountyhunter and his goons attacked us, I was goin' to tell y'all 'bout this highly peculiar device I located within this very basin. I reckon that it was the outlaws who brought it, but I'm still quizzed over it's purpose" He started pacing back and forth on the creaking platform as he spoke, looking down at the strange scrape marks in the surface. "It is built like an old medieval catapult, with a few modifications. An' my guess is that they load it with dynamite, as there are also crates with dynamite strewn around the device. Now, here comes the main puzzle which worries me the most..." He stopped and faced the group again. "Why didn't they use it?" A mumble went through the crowd.

"Maybe 'cause it's locked inside a container?" Thomas rolled his eyes and crossed his four arms over his plated chest.

"Actually, they seem to have though of that too." Rango said and pointed to the twin deputies. "Elton, Tarrant, ya boys don't mind givin' me a hand here?"

The two possums nodded and climbed up the ladder to the platform and looked at the sheriff with puzzled faces. Rango nodded and proceeded to point at the side of the metal container. "If ya look closely here, ya can see the outline of a big door or somethin'" He said and followed a nearly invisible crack that stretched from one side to another, all the was across to the other side. "I reckon ya can open the basin like..."

A wild murmur rose from the crowd and interrupted the sheriff. Cacophony broke out when everybody started talking at the same time:

"What?"

"When did they do this?!"

"HOW d'they do this?! Ah mean, we should've noticed if anyone was tamperin' with our t'watertower!"

"Yeah, n' we ain't even heard 'nythin'!"

"An' what IS that 'device'?"

"We wanna see it!"

Rango swallowed nervously and held up his hands to the crowd and did a downwards movement with them. "I-if y'all just quiet down for a bit I'll see if me and the boys can open it and show ya the device I was talkin' 'bout!" He said and somehow managed to get the fighters to calm down. He cleared his throat again and turned to the twins. "Look at the ends and see if ya can find hinges or an hasp or somethin'!"

The twin deputies nodded and went to investigate. But after searching for a great amount of time, and some of the fighters becoming visibly impatient, the twins turned to Rango and shrugged. "Sorry, sir..." Tarrant began. "... But we can't find anythin'!" Elton finished.

Rango frowned and began to rub his chin. "Puzzling..." He mumbled to himself.

Suddenly Elton perked up. "But, there could be somethin' on the inside?"

"Great thinkin' there, sonny!" Rango grinned and snapped his fingers. "I didn't look 'round too closely in there!" He scratched the back of his neck. "I-I just saw the device and thought I was gonna tell y'all as quick as I could..." He said, feeling a bit embarrassed that he didn't think of that. Putting locks and everything on the inside would actually been smarter. _Oh well..._ He though and watched Elton climb up the second ladder and enter the basin.

Soon they heard a clinking noise on the other side and a part of the container was pushed outward. Tarrant and Rango grabbed the edge and pulled it outwards while Elton pushed from the inside. The big hatch-like door slowly swung with a weak grinding noise, barely noticeable. However, it did scrape the bottom against the wooden planks of the platform, leaving a trail of light scratches behind. The work with the door seemed to have been made hastily as the edges of the door were sharp and cut into their hands, and the hinges were made out strips of leather glued to the metal.

"T-this... is the d-device... I-I was talkin 'bout..." Rango grinned and pointed with his entire arm into the opened basin.

The crowd went silent. Almost awkwardly silent.

"Umm, sheriff Rango?" Gus said and slowly pointed with a shaggy quill.

Rango followed his finger and looked inside the basin. The device was there alright. Or what was left of it at least. Cords and ropes holding it together had been cut off, some of the lither wooden parts broken and screws and metal parts were lying all over the place.

"What the...?" He exclaimed and jumped back.

"Hicks..." Jake mumbled, remembering when the coyote had rushed to the watertower and climbed up.

"I-it didn't look like this before!" He frowned and walked up to it, picking up a stump of rope. "Someone must've destroyed it!"

"It must've been Hicks..." Jake said with a low voice, everyones eyes fell on the large rattlesnake. "He climbed up the water tower. I thought he was gonna stand there an' shoot... "

"But why didn't ya stop him? I mean, ya were hidin' under it, werent'ya?" Thomas questioned the snake, Jakes rattle began to shake.

"WHAT DID YA SAY?!" He growled loudly and bared his fangs, pointing the rattles barrel at the loudmouth cockroach.

Thomas held up his four hands in defense. "Woah, easy there, Mr Reaper! I'm just askin'!"

"Enough!" Beans snapped at them and climbed up the ladder to join Rango and the two deputies from Dry Creek. She took a quick glance at the broken weapon. "Maybe we could fix it? There's gotta be a reason they destroyed it an' didn't want us to use it?"

Rango scratched his chin. "Well, we could always try... I still remember what it looked like!" He said pondering.

"Hey! Hey! Everyone, look over there!" Waffles loud, raspy voice was heard from the crowd and everyone pointed to where the little horned toad were pointing. Closing in on the town came a lonely rider, whom everyone recognized as Ergyl as soon as he got close enough.

Rango scurried down the ladder and hurried over to the arriving bobcat. "So, how did it go?" He asked excitedly as Ergil dismounted his runner.

"Well..." Ergil mumbled, and Rangos smile turned into a worried frown. Something in his voice told Rango that everything hadn't gone as planned on that front... "They refused" The bobcat continued without giving the sheriff as much as a look.

Rango didn't move. "R-refused? Why?"

"Balthazar died a few days ago, an' they're holdin' the funeral soon." He spat on the ground and tied his roadrunner next to a watering. "One helluva timin' if ya ask me!"

Rango shoulders slouched. "Oh..." He managed to squeeze through. So Balthazar finally died. He had always looked worse than he acted, but they always thought that he would live at LEAST twenty more years! His death felt like a huge loss for Rango. Even though the massive, and questionably genetically healthy, family had their disputes with the town every now and then, they had still been helping the town and it's townspeople out whenever asked and Dirt would always repay them somehow. Usually a couple of tons of alcohol would suffice.

But now Balthazar, the father to most of them and someone that could be considered the leader, had died. Leaving an entire family in grief.

"So, we're on our own, huh?" Mordecai said, a young chipmunk about Priscillas age. He fumbled the dirty, worn sleeves on his shirt. "Unless Spoons made it to Dry Creek..." He looked down on his hands.

The Dirtonians moods have all been lowered by these news. Not exactly a cheerful thought. The outsiders also became affected by the change in spirit and most of them crossed theirs arms and stared into the ground. Jake cocked an eyebrow to Rango, who looked around at his townspeople with a worried frown. He pondered for a while before climbing up to the platform again.

He hollered and put his hands on his hips, catching everyones attention again.

"What's WRONG with y'all, people?" He exclaimed, the people looking at him with confused looks. "I hope y'all have noticed that were around twenty persons here, and how many are they? They are eight. Eight people against twenty! Not only are they outnumbered, but we've also got somethin' they don't..." He paused for effect, letting his words sink into the people below him. "We've got the TRUE Spirit of the West!"

A murmur went through the crowd.

"What did he say?"

"Huh?"

"What does he mean by that?"

"What difference does that make?"

"The Spirit of the West ain't got nothin' to do with this!"

The sheriff held up his hand, hushing the people down. "These fellas are nothin' but murderers, assassins willin' to destroy other peoples lives JUST for their own personal, selfish gain! The only reason they're doin this is b'cause of what they think is retribution! Revenge against the Rattlesnakes, and possibly against me too! These gunslingers are what's givin' the West a bad reputation! They try to act like tough, cold criminals, wavin' their guns 'round with a big bully-attitude! Killin' off whoever they want, even pointin' their guns at children ain't fazin' 'em! But that only proves one thing now, doesn't it?"

Everyone were listening intently to the sheriff with their ears perked. Even a small smile tugged at the corners of Jakes lips.

"That they're cowards! The whole lot! They ain't no big an' scary outlaws, they're pathetic little children! Unable to do somethin' creative with their lives, they decides to ruin others instead! The Spirit of the West ain't 'bout the gunslingers and the lawmen! It ain't merely 'bout the cowboys an' the indians; it's about the bravery and stubbornness of the headstrong men and women who lives here! Who has managed to thrive here! Coyotes, praire dogs, lizards, snakes, birds an' everythin' in between!"

Encouraging 'aye's and cheers from the crowd echoed throughout the town. Curious about all the commotion, Jolene decided to stick her head out through the window and was smiling softly at the sheriffs little show.

"And you, my fellow Dirtonians, and Dry Creekers of course, should know that better than anyone else!" Everyone went silent, listening eagerly. "There's no harsher environment to live in than the Mojave Desert; it's hot, dry and everything bigger than yourself is out to kill ya! And yet..." He threw his arm out at the lake. "We managed to get a frickin' LAKE right in the middle of the bloomin' desert! If that ain't a sign that there ain't nothin' we can't do, then I don't know WHAT is! Yes, these outlaws are more cunning than the others we've encountered before. Yes, they've managed to overpower us more than once despite their lack in numbers. YES, their boss is scary, BUT!"

He did another pause, looking the townspeople in their eyes until he finally locked eyes with Woodrow. The old praire dog had first seemed skeptical and annoyed about Rangos little peptalk, but was now listening with an amused raised eyebrow.

"But don't forget that we're desert critters. We're survivors! We're fighters! And I say that next time they show up, we'll give 'em a warm welcome, the Dirtonian way! Whaddy'all say?!"

The noise coming from the crowd was almost deafening as everyone cheered, whooped, hollered, clapped their hands, whistled, threw their hat's in the air, ANYTHING to show their approval of the plan. The only one sitting quietly at the far end was Jake, with merely a lopsided grin on his face.

_This might get interesting..._ He thought with a chuckle as the sheriff, beaming with self-confidence at the moment, bowed comically to the public.

**I've had that little peptalk of Rangos in my head for a while now, it's a good thing to have gotten that out finally ^^! My head feels sort of... lighter, now o.O... Lol xD!  
**

**AND I'm starting to feel my imagination returning to meee, YAAY :'D!**


	39. Just bein' worried, that's all!

**Alright, chapter numero dos is up! **

**There are both Bentley and Priss moments as well as some Blake and Coral in this one, hehehe ;)!**

**Enjoy :D! **

***** Chapter Thirtynine : Just Bein' Worried, That's All! *****

While the bountyhunter Rango did all in his power to save his beloved roadrunner, Thunder Wing returned. The hatch in the roof opened and the bald eagle tumbled down. Shot, in pain and royally pissed off.

He got hit by Jakes bullets in his legs and his left wing, forcing him to fly half of the way before forcing him to stop and rest before he could limp over to the Nest. With his head held high, trying to save whatever was left of his dignity, he managed to limp away to his chamber, leaving a trail of blood and feathers.

He also seemed to know that Arrow got wounded as he, shortly after his arrival, sent a package with a strange mixture of different, healing herbs to the stable. Rango, thankful for all the help he could get, gladly accepted the gift with the promise to repay the favor.

To help Rango get Arrow to recover was Victor and Coral. Priss had been helping out in the start, but Arrow wouldn't accept her to get close.

She decided to tell Hicks about the plans she overheard Bob and Wes talking about, as Rango was busy at the moment. She told him everything she heard, leaving out the part about her and Bentley out, and he would occasionally nod while listening to her story. When she was done, he remained quiet for a while, but a faint grin tugged in the corners of his mouth.

"Thanks, that's great! Sort of..." He said with a nod. "I'll make sure Rango gets t'know. He might wanna tell Jonas 'bout it after he's taken care of Arrow" And with that, the coyote left. Leaving Priss in the middle of the main hall. She started walking back to the communion room and were soon caught up by Bentley.

"Gee, ya think Arrow'll be okay?" He asked while they walked through the dimly lit corridor. "Rango ain't gonna be too happy if she doesn't..." He didn't finished the sentence.

Priss didn't answer, just a weak shrug was the reply he got. She actually felt sorry for Rango. The fear and anger so clearly visible on his face was something she never thought she'd see. His voice had gotten that dark, spine-chilling tone he used when he was in 'business-mode' or just wanted to freak people out.

But then she started to think back in Dirt. If everyone's assumption was right, then Blake was dead and his siblings rabid with anger. They would without the shadow of a doubt kill anyone they'd get their hands, or coils, on. And they'd probably have all right to do it. Sure, Blake maybe deserved it. But his siblings didn't, especially not Jolene. Priss threw her arms around herself as she felt her stomach turn in worry. Jolene was known to be a bit over protective of her brothers, as they were all she got left. Wonder what she was capable of doing now, when one of them were gone? She had actually seemed pretty nice, as Priss recalled from their first encounter in the cavern. But she didn't accept it when Priss drew her gun at Blake when he tried to suffocate sheriff Rango. What if she took out her anger at someone in Dirt? Oh well, as long as she didn't hurt anyone Priss knew...

She shot a quick glance at Bentley. His ears drooped and he acted like he was uneasy, nervous; his eye flicked from side to side and sometimes he would look over his shoulder.

"What's wrong?" She asked, not bothering to ask IF anything was wrong; it was far too obvious.

Bentley didn't answer, he just looked behind them and narrowed his eyes. Priss carefully turned her head too and saw the Gajerra brothers studying them from afar. The two tall Komodo dragons leaned against each sides of the corridor with their arms folded across their wide chests. Their thick, dark skin almost blended in with the rocks, only the ice blue eyes glistened in the dark. Pancho was chewing on a new cigar and the ember gave his eyes a yellowish glow, sending a chill down Priss' spine. She grabbed Bentleys arm and pulled him closer as they continued to the com. room together.

"Soo..." Priss said, trying to get them both to forget about the lizards behind them. "Where did my scarf go?"

The hyena slowed down and looked down on the ground. "Umm... I..." He started and scratched the back of his neck. "I think I lost it... Sorry..." He mumbled and looked up at her from under his bangs. "I-I'm really sorry..."

She chuckled and waved it off. "It's alright, don't worry 'bout it! Besides, ya got my guns back!" She smiled at him and nearly wiped the hair covering her bruised cheek to the side.

He returned the smile and couldn't help but to glance at her bruised neck. "C-can I ask ya somethin'?"

"Ya already did!" They looked at each other in silence for a few seconds before he started laughing. She grinned at her own joke.

"Hehe, didn't see that one coming!" He chuckled and rubbed the back of his head again. "Umm... what I was gonna ask 'bout was yer neck..."

Priss tilted her head. "My... neck?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "What 'bout it?"

"You've got all these... bruises around it..." He pointed his hand at her throat. "What happened?" He sounded worried, so she traced her hand up to where he pointed. It still hurt a bit since Pancho tried to strangle her, but did he really leave a mark?

She stopped and pulled out her knife, using the blade as a mirror again. Damn, she needed a real mirror! Maybe she could give Bentley a 'shopping'-list next time they went to Dirt? She had to tilt the blade in a weird angle to spot the bluish mark around her throat. She bit her lip and returned the knife to its place.

"I- I dunno..." She stuttered and shrugged. "I never noticed 'til now. I've always worn the scarf, I could've had it for a long time, y'know!" A skeptically raised eyebrow from Bentley revealed that he wasn't sure he believed her little fib. "C-could be the scarf, some materials leaves color stains!" She barely stopped herself from moving the hair out of her face again. Having hair covering half of your face is more annoying than it sounds, especially if you're not used to it.

Bentley slowly nodded, but he still wasn't convinced that the scarf was behind the marks. "But what's up with the hair?" He asked instead, finding it a tad suspicious.

"What is this? An interrogation? What have I done now?" She stopped walking, crossed her arms and furrowed her brows at him. "I just thought a new hairstyle ev'ry now and then would be refreshin'! I'm SORRY yer highness ain't approvin' of it!" She pouted and turned her head away.

"H-hey, now! I'm sorry! Ya don't need to get all angry 'bout it!" Bentley chuckled nervously and held up his hands in defense. "I kinda like it, honestly! It's just that I can't see both of yer eyes at the same time, an' it kinda freaks me out!" He put his hand on her shoulder, careful not to touch the bruising in case it would hurt.

Priss' left corner of her mouth was tugged up in a lopsided grin and she quickly took a look around to make sure no one was around. Even the Gajerra brothers had disappeared. She felt simultaneously relieved and scared. Relieved that they were gone, and also scared for the same reason. When she was sure that they were alone in the corridor she made eyecontact with Bentley. "I let my hair loose b'cause ya said ya liked it that way, y'know. Want me to put it up again?" She snickered when she saw the sides of his face turn a faint red.

"Uh, y-ya did?" He stuttered, not sure how he should respond; throw his arms around her or jump around, laughing maniacally.

She nodded. "Yeah, Ya want me to put it up again or what? I wouldn't mind, at least it would stop gettin' into my mouth when I eat!" She teased and tilted her head.

He chuckled and moved his hand up to her cheek. "Nah! If ya wanna keep it like that, then sure! I'll miss yer ol' bangs though..." He grinned and leaned closer to her. But just as their lips were about to meet, he accidentally brushed against her wounds, sending a small jolt of pain through her face.

"Ow!" She yelped and jerked her head away.

He frowned and moved his fingers over the strand of hair covering half of her face. She sighed and rolled her eyes, but let him move the hair to the side, revealing her bruised cheek and the two long scratches. His face grew paler and he flattened his ears to his neck, letting out an almost inaudible growl.

"I... I walked into a door. Didn't wanna show ya..." Priss moved her head to the side and grimaced.

Bentley stopped growling. "Why not?"

"Ya think I'm proud of boltin' head-first into a door?!" She snorted and folded her arms. "I've never felt so stupid!" That wasn't a complete lie. She had never felt more stupid than the time she had to be rescued TWICE by Caleb the Insufferable.

His mouth were tugged upwards in a cautious grin. "Sorry. But, first I see ya with that bruise 'round yer neck, then this I... I..." He shook his head.

Priss turned back at him and put her hands on her hips. "Hey, if were gonna freak out over each others injuries, then whaddya got to say 'bout that!" She nodded to his ear, where a piece of skin were missing. It had stopped bleeding and would probably grow out again without any scarring. But what the hell, that still counted as a battle injury, didn't it?

Bentley shrugged. "I dunno, I think it might've been that cockroach, that cheater's got four guns!"

"Then ya were lucky he's such a bad shot." Priss reached her hand up to his head and traced a finger along his ear. " A little bit more to the center an' BAM". He gulped and his ears flattened in fear. Priss laughed. "I'm sorry, didn't mean to scare ya!"

"But ya did..." He mumbled in a somber voice.

"C'mon" She grabbed his arm and gently pulled him with her. "I'm starvin'! Whaddya think Fledge an' Flitch's cooked up for us?"

"Beans I bet..." Bentley mumbled and followed her, throwing an arm around her shoulders. "That's the only grub they CAN cook!" He winced and pouted. "I want pancakes!"

Hours later and the sun had set on the outside. However, it was impossible to tell inside the nest as the gloomy, yellowish lights from the torches and lanterns never changed.

Rango never left Arrow in the stable, not even to eat. Coral had gone to bed a long time ago, completely worn out after the long day. Just like the rest of the outlaws; Fledge had fallen asleep with the face buried in his plate of beans and Scrange suddenly just collapsed spread-eagle on floor, snoring loudly. Eventually, everyone decided it was a good idea to go to bed. These last days had been tiring. To put it mildly...

However, Bentley hadn't been asleep for long until another nightmare woke him up. He jolted awake, his heart beating furiously and cold sweat dripping from his forehead. He rubbed the tears from his eyes and looked around, feeling slightly disoriented.

This nightmare had been different from the rest, worse! He carefully lied down again, facing the wall while he tried to remember the dream. It was still a bit fuzzy, but it had started out as the usual: first he met Corny, then his father appeared. But then something changed; he met Priscilla! She was laughing at something he said. He was laughing too. They had been having a great time by the Mud lake. But then, that cursed gunshot was heard. Bentley frowned. But it wasn't the same gunshot as back then. This time, instead of captain Tip being the one holding a gun, it had been one of the Gajerras, probably Francisco. And the one being shot wasn't his father. Bentleys eyes widened and he clawed at the ground. The one being shot this time was Priscilla!

A sudden hand on his shoulder made him jump and turn his head around.

"Oh, sorry! Didn't mean to scare ya..." Priscilla quickly withdrew her hand.

Bentley shook his head and dragged himself up to an upright position, leaning his back against the cool wall. He stifled a yawn and looked at her. She had braided the hair into a short braid and had a blue blanket draped over her shoulders. "It's alright! I-I guess I'm just a bit jumpy tonight, that's all!" He said and chuckled tiredly.

She tilted her head. "Are ya okay?"

His head drooped as he slowly shook it again. "Nah... These darn nightmares... gettin' really sick of 'em right now!" He grimaced, sticking his tongue out. "Twenty years of the same bullshit over and over again..."

She didn't say anything. She just sat down next to him against the wall and leaned on his shoulder. His eyes darted down to her and he felt his cheeks turn slightly red. "I had a nightmare too..." She said low, almost like a whisper.

His ears perked up. "Ya did?" He said, sounding a bit dumbfounded.

She nodded. "Yeah... and ya were innit..."

"Of course, it's a nightmare b'cause I'm innit, right?" He chuckled nervously, trying to lighten the mood.

She smiled and shook her head. "Nah, I don't think so" She draped the blanket tighter around her. "I can't even remember most of it. Ya were there, somethin' 'bout Dirt, both Rangos and... And the Gajerra brothers..." She felt the familiar shivers down her back as soon as she even mentioned the name. "But that's all I can remember. Oh, and there was a lot of water everywhere!" She frowned and turned to him. "Ya think it means somethin'?"

Bentley shrugged. "I dunno! Perhaps it do..."

They were both quiet for a while. That is, until Priss spoke again; "Y-ya don't mind if I bunk down h-here tonight?" She turned her head away, not wanting him to see the redness appearing on her cheeks. When he didn't answer, she mumbled a quick 'sorry' and was about to get up.

"Sure!" He said, stopping her by placing an hand on her shoulder. "Just couldn't think of a witty response, that's all!" He grinned an excusing grin. She chuckled and rolled her eyes before sitting down next to him again.

Later on, he had fallen asleep with his head resting on her shoulder. She leaned back against him and closed her eyes, listening to his calm breathing. They were still sitting up with their backs to the wall, although his shoulder had fallen a bit behind her back and his arm sneaked its way around her waist. She held his hand with both of hers.

Why she decided to go to him after jolting awake from the nightmare, she wasn't sure. Maybe because he would understand her? It wasn't like he was inexperienced with nightmares... Besides, the whole Nest seemed to know about them by now, so she didn't ponder for long on what the other guys would say next morning.

A sudden rustling sound from the furthest wall made her force her eyes open. She squinted her eyes in the same direction as the sound, trying to make sense out of the shadows. Corals face appeared in the light. She looked around the room before slithering out, not noticing that Priss was awake though.

Priscilla and Bentley hadn't been the only one with bad dreams; Coral had been drifting in and out of sleep all night. Every time she closed her eyes as began to fall asleep, she had seen Blakes beat up face. His cocky grin replaced by a painful grimace. The fiery eyes dulled by excruciating pain. Eventually, she had enough and decided to slither out. Everyone thought Blake was dead, but Coral felt otherwise. He just couldn't be dead like that, no way!

She slithered through the corridors, that were even more poorly lit during the nights, and made it to Thunder Wings room; an old storage room rebuilt to fit the eagle. She had hoping that he would be asleep, but as soon as she peeked in through the empty doorway, she was greeted by Thunder Wings voice;

"Good evening, Burrower. Thunder Wing is pleased to see Burrower is back with us!" The big raptor was resting in a large, round nest built out of twigs and pieces of soft fabric, placed in the middle of the room. A heavy scent of smoke and herbs rested in the air. Coral silently went inside and slithered up to the bird. "It is very unusual to see Burrower at this hour. What honor does Thunder Wing have, seeing Burrower tonight?"

Coral looked down on the ground, biting her lip.

"Thunder Wing understands. He sees worry in your eyes, Burrower. Worry and fear. For the Grim Reapers brother, yes?" The snake looked up at the raptor and nodded slowly. "And now, you come here. You want Thunder Wings help, yes?" She nodded again. The raptor sighed and shook his head, the decorative feathers on his head swaying. "He can't help the enemy of his friend, Hunter in Black..." Corals head drooped and she averted her eyes. "Besides, the Grim Reaper shot Thunder Wing. Legs not good now. But...!" She looked up again, feeling her heart skip a beat. "He can help the daughter of Hunter in Black!" The raptor nodded and began to root around in his nest, using his beak.

Coral eagerly peeked over the walls of the nest. She caught a glimpse of his legs; they were covered in a thick, green slab that gave off a bittersweet scent.

The big bird took out a small satchel with dried herbs. The herbs in the satchel also gave off a strong smell, but not like the slab on Thunder Wings legs.

"This relieves pain. Fights fever and evil in wounds. Now go!" He gave the satchel to Coral. She smiled widely and did a quick bow with her head before bolting out of the room, not wanting to waste more time. Thunder Wing chuckled to himself and rested his head on the wall around his nest. "Strange people, those snakes. Burrower likes Poison Tongue even when Poison Tongue betrays her" He shook his head. "And Poison Tongue likes Burrower, yet he chose to be with other women" The bird closed his blazing yellow eyes. "Very strange snakes indeed!"

...

In Dirt, Jolene was still staying next to her brother. He had begun to violently stir around, fever was coursing through his body and the pain he felt in his wounds was excruciating.

Jolene tried to hold his head still in her coils while the rest of his body underwent erratic spasm attacks. She leaned her head against his burning hot forehead while struggling against the tears.

She had been in denial for a long time, telling herself that he would be okay. His fever would pass eventually, and he would go back to sleeping like a log.

But it never passed. In fact, it got worse and worse by every passing minute. It slowly became clear to her: Blake wouldn't survive the night. Not if everything continued like this!

She clenched her jaws together. Maybe she should go and wake Jake up? But what if Blake died while she was away? Then he would die alone! She cursed loudly when Blakes tail did an involuntary jerk, knocking down a picture of the anatomy of a skink lizard.

Suddenly she heard a tapping on the window. Her head snapped around just in time to see Coral push the window open with her snout. Jolenes eyes thinned into slits and she drew her gun, pointing it at Coral. The tricolored snake flinched and stopped halfway into the room.

"Listen, Coral..." Jolene growled. "I'm sorry fer what Blake did, but if ya get any closer I'll shoot!" To mark her words, the hammer on the revolver-esque gun were pulled back with a _click_.

Coral hesitated for a second before slithering onto the wooden floor. Her head was held low, almost at ground level, and she avoided eye contact with the diamondback.

Jolene growled again. "Didn't ya hear me?!" Coral ignored her and retrieved the satchel from her curled up tail. Jolene raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything nor lowered her gun.

Coral placed the satchel in front of her on the floor and gave it a nudge with her snout. Pushing it closer to the two diamondbacks. A pained whimper from Blake made her green eyes dart over to him. His scales seemed paler than ever except for his face, it was blushing with fever. Coral felt a jab in her stomach at the sight of him. He looked so small, so vulnerable... The coralsnake turned around and vanished out through the window again.

Jolene looked at the satchel with a skeptical look before wrapping her tail around it and bring it closer. _Healing herbs?_ She thought with disbelief when she looked inside it. _Why would she...?_ She turned to the door. Oh well, what could possibly go wrong?

She drew a deep breath. "JAAKE! DOOOOC! WAKE UP AND GET YER FAT ASSES OVER 'ERE, NOW!"

...

Meanwhile Coral was sneaking out from the Nest, and Priscilla slowly fell asleep next to Bentley, a group of around forty men was gathered in the eastern communion room. Their eyes all turned towards the speaker standing on the counter; a raccoon dressed as a trapper.

"Lets see, are we all here?" He asked, looking over the collection of rugged men, all with their own, shady pasts.

Nobody said anything, so the raccoon rubbed his hands together and snickered. "Good! Now, let's just get straight to the matter, alright?" He stood up straight and made sure to keep eyecontact with the men as he spoke to them; "I know our 'friends' the bountyhunters showed up at a very bad time, they would've saved themselves a whole lot of trouble, but I guess it can't be helped now, can it? I say we continue with our plans as nothing happened, and if anyone gets in the way, well... Accidents happen, don't they?" He smile slyly and the snicker spread like a wildfire through the group. "Anyway, I've summoned you all here to give you some updates: according to Jeff and Larry here, it is confirmed that the King keeps the valve-key in his office somewhere. But where is unclear, so we'll just have to try and get him to tell us where it is. Number two on my list; they destroyed the weapon in Dirt to make sure the townspeople can't use it... That was kinda stupid, methinks... Another reason to get in the valve before we continue with the main event! And now for the final matter at hand...!"

"What's this, Jet? Ya gon' start the fun without us?" Forty heads turned to the doorway and more than half were instinctively lowered when they saw the Gajerra brothers standing in the entrance to the com. room. Francisco shook his head. "That ain't very nice, innit?"

The raccoon, 'Jet', grinned at the two Komodo dragons. "Why I thought you two were already here!"

"Trust me pipsqueak, ya would've noticed if we were here or not..." Pancho growled and chewed on his cigar.

"Aw, don't be like that, brother! I'm sure our GOOD friend Jet 'ere didn't mean t'freeze us out, did'ya Jet?" Francisco shot a cold look at the raccoon.

Jet held his hands up and nervously shook his head from side to side. "N-no! Of course not! Here, have a seat! We just got started anyway!" He gestured to an empty table to his right.

The two Komodo dragons walked past the table and placed themselves on each side of the critter.

"Now, would ya care to explain what's goin' on?" Francisco tilted his head and smiled. A cold, joyless smile. Pancho agreed by unsheathing his knife and jab it into the counter, as close as he could to Jets foot. Jet jumped to the side.

"HEY! STOP stabbing my bar, Gajerra!" Hog rumbled from his table in the middle. Pancho hissed, Hog lowered his eyes and muttred.

"Y-you two weren't here when we went through it the first time?" Jet asked carefully.

"Sorry, had to assassinate some dumb mongrel who claimed he couldn't pay Jonas fer t'last d'livery" Francisco shrugged.

Jet nodded in understanding. "Ah, I see! Well, the first thing we need would be the things in the valve, so we'll just have to have a little chat with Jonas and see if he'll be kind enough to tell us where the key is. I mean, the Dirtonians stubbornness and fighting spirit is legendary, we're gonna need bigger guns if we were to take the town and..."

"Woah, woah, woah!" Pancho took out his cigar and spat on the ground before putting it back into his mouth. "Why the hell would ANYONE want a shitty lil' town like Dirt?!"

"I think I know" Francisco said and raised an invisible eyebrow at the raccoon. "It's the water, right?"

"Of course, why else?" Jet crossed his arms. "I mean, we're in the Mojave desert, the driest place on gods earth, and these spoiled rednecks have an entire LAKE to themselves! Imagine the money we could make on all the water!" Liking nods and murmur were spread throughout the room. The two Komodo dragons snorted.

"That's all there is?" Pancho mumbled, not satisfied.

"Yes, but there's a LOT of it!"

"We're not interested!" The Komodo dragon said, but his brother had different plans.

"While I agree with Pan, there's one thing that got my attention..." Francisco said with a grin. "What're we gon' do with Rango n' his goons?"

Jet shrugged. "Well, at first we were just gonna ignore, perhaps capture them along with the King..." His striped, fluffy tail swished. "But then Bob and Wes gave me an idea. They said they wanted to 'get back' at Bentley, and if I'm correct they aren't the only ones, right boys?"

The walls almost started to shake when all forty men said in unison: "Yeah!"

"Y'all gon' git back at Bentley huh?" Francisco grinned and leaned on the counter. "How are ya gon' do that?"

"Oh, we were thinking you two were gonna get the honor!" Jet grinned at the puzzled looks on the Komodo dragons faces. "It's not an especially well kept secret that he has a soft spot for that brighteyed familiar of Calebs. I bet he would do anything for her! Including killing someone! And I've heard all about your encounter with 'his girl', wouldn't it be great to relieve yourselves of some of the humiliation she caused you earlier today?"

Pancho growled while Francisco slowly nodded with an approving smirk on his face. "Keep talkin', buddy!"

**Alright, that's it for today, two chapters ain't bad, innit :D?**

**Lol, pretty useless chapter, I know, but in this last chapter I wanted to introduce Jet to y'all. Some fun fact: he's actually one of the first characters in this universe that I came up with, and he was originally going to be one of Rangos men when I realized I needed a real badguy, and neither Rango nor Hicks would stand this guy after a while anyway xD! Oh well...**

**See y'all in the next chapter; chapter 40, WHOOOO! (Shiet, it feels like this is never gonna end xD!)**


	40. Make her laugh!

**New chapter :D! **

**There has been a lot from the outlaws point of view now (especially about Priscilla and Bentley, hehe ^^), and there will be more. The reason for that is at the moment, things are pretty slow in Dirt. Not a lot of action going on ^^... Yet!  
**

**Anyway, here's chapter forty, enjoy~!**

***** Chapter Forty : Make Her Laugh! *****

"Hey! Prissy! Hey! Wake up!" Someone whispered loudly and shook her shoulder. "Prissy! Hey!"

Priscilla groaned sleepily and pulled the blanket tighter around her. She carefully opened one eye. "Bentley...?" She mumbled, trying to hold back a yawn. "Whaddya want?"

"Hey, Pri...! Oh, you're awake!" He grinned.

She tried to glare at him with heavy eyelids. "Now I am, yes!" She slurred.

"Great! Ya remember the place I showed ya the night before last night?!"

She closed her eyes again. "Yeah, why?"

"Well, I was just gonna ask ya if ya wanna know what it looks like durin' the sunrise?!" He said, sounding enthusiastic.

"Yeah... Sure..." She said, yawning loudly. "Maybe some day..."

He flicked his ears. "Why not today?"

"I'm way to tired to do anythin' right now... Especially to climb!" She opened her eye again. "Sorry Bentley. I'd really wanna come with ya, but I can hardly speak at the moment... Sorry..."

"It's alright! I can carry ya there!"

She closed her eye again and yawned. "Yeah... sure, go ahead..." She mumbled. Then her eyes sprung wide opened when she understood what he said. "W-wait, I...!"

She yelped in surprise as she was scooped up from the ground. With her in his arms, he sneaked out of the room, careful not to wake anyone up this time. He moved as if she didn't weigh more than a feather. But then again, she wasn't all that surprised: he WAS a pretty strong-looking fella.

She circled one arm around his neck, the other she used to keep the blanket on. "You've been drinkin' coffee again, haven't ya?" She raised an eyebrow at him.

He shrugged. "Yeah, maybe one cup or so..." Her eyebrow raised itself even higher up. "Alright then, two cups!" He admitted with a sigh. She smiled and leaned her head against the crook of his neck.

After making the climb up the wall, where Priss had to switch to cling on to his back while he climbed, they finally arrived at 'their tunnel'. Just in time for the sun to rise.

The land was nothing but shadows, still lingering from the night. But far away in the horizon the dark blue night sky was slowly growing lighter, and a red streak begun to appear where the land met the sky. The sun, nothing more than a small, yellow orb, began to heave itself over the skyline, shedding light over the desert and making the shadows tall.

A chilly breeze swept in through the tunnel, making a faint, howling sound. The air was still chilly from the night. Priscilla shivered, pulled the blanket closer and leaned her back against Bentley. He rested his chin on her shoulder. They were sitting with their backs against the walls of the tunnel, her in front of him with his arms wrapped around her waist. She closed her eyes and listened to his slow heartbeats, with a faint smile on her lips.

Funny how quickly he could change. A couple of minutes ago he was on the verge of getting hyperactive, constantly giggling to himself and was probably tripping over his own thoughts. Now he was calm, hugging her as close as possible. He gently stroke his thumb over the fabric of her shirt down by her hip while staring blankly ahead. Probably thinking about something. But for all she knew, he could also be plotting his next prank, or repeating the chorus of 'the Camptown Races' for himself. This was one of the many mysteries with Bentley: you never know what's going on in his head!

"Hey, Bentley..." She said and leaned her head back on his shoulder.

"Mmhmm?" He flicked his eyes to her.

"Can I ask ya one thing?"

"Ya already did!" He grinned.

She rolled her eyes and laughed tiredly. "Alright then, several things?"

"Sure!"

"Why does Thunder Wing hate ya so much? I get that he's another one of yer victims, but from what I've understood, Thunder Wing comes from a peaceful tribe. It would take a lot for him to grow a vendetta against someone, wouldn't it?"

Bentley lifted his head from her shoulder. "Umm, yeah... It would..." He looked down at the ground. "Well... It was last year, when Jonas used his Nest in Utah and we..."

"Wait, there's more Nests?"

"Yeah, all over the place! At least five of them, from Texas to Michigan! Anyway, Thunder Wing was there too. And I thought it would be funny to do the tar-n'-feathers thing. I mean, the birdo's already got the feather part covered, all I had to do was to steal a barrel of tar, hide above Thunders room and tip the tar over him as soon as he poked his head out" Bentley shook his head. "I don't think he thought it was as funny as I... huh, Prissy?" He interrupted himself as he felt her shoulders trembling. She buried her face in her hands, letting out small, muffled sounds. He moved one of his hands up to her shoulder. "H-hey, what's wrong!? Y-ya ain't cryin' are ya?" He asked nervously and got a puzzled look on his face as she threw her head back and began to laugh uncontrollably.

"Tar-n'-feathers?" She gasped between the laugh attacks and tried to calm down, but to no use. Despite being too tired to laugh at the moment, she just couldn't seem to stop. The thought was just so... priceless! He tilted his head before he carefully started to laugh with her. "You're crazy, ya know that?" She wiped the tears away from the corners of her eyes and looked up at him.

He shrugged. "The thought HAS crossed my mind every now and then, yeah..." He chuckled and rolled his eyes.

They kept watching the sunrise until he noticed that she had fallen asleep again, leaning her head against his shoulder.

_Wow, she wasn't kiddin' when she said she was tired!_ He thought to himself and let his own head rest on her shoulder. He closed his eyes and chuckled softly. Coffee. Coffee is weird. It tastes pretty disgusting, but it gives you the feeling that you're the king of the world for a couple of minutes, or hours depending on how much you drink, but then you crash and suddenly becomes even more tired than before. _Wait, why did I start thinkin' 'bout coffee all of a sudden? _He frowned. _And why did I even ask myself that?_ He shook his head to get his thoughts straightened out before looking down at Priss. She had a string of hair that had fallen over her face. He moved his hand from the back of her head and moved the hair out of her face and saw the two scratches, stretched from her cheek to the temple. He bit his lip and removed his hand. She said she got them from walking into a door. But door won't give you scratch marks would they? And he wasn't sure he believed that it was the scarf that caused the, now fading, bruises around her throat.

He discovered that he had bit down so hard on his lip that one of his fangs punctured the skin, letting out a small droplet of blood. He wiped it off with his sleeve on his already dirty shirt. _Note to self; no more white clothes..._

Wait, they looked like claw marks! He frowned worriedly. _She didn't run into a door. Someone must've done this to her!_ He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. _But why won't she tell me!?_ He opened his eyes wide. _What if the Gajerra brothers are behind all this?! Why didn't she tell me? Wait, what if they've threatened to kill her if she told anyone?! What have they more done to her that she won't tell me?!_ His hand went up to his forehead. _No! No more thoughts like that! Don't be stupid! Prissy can defend herself! She would never let the Gajerra brothers touch her! Oh great, now I'm feelin' all sick again... Have to think 'bout somethin' else... Stripes! Stripes are good! Stripes are... Stripey! Diagonal! Horizontal! Vertical! Wish I had stripes! Then I could be one of the Striped Ones! Sure, their food sucks, but they've got nice taste in music! An' their hair is to DIE for! Just look at Tobys hair! It was amazin'!_

Priss shifted in his arms burying her face in his chest. He hugged her closer, one hand on her shoulder, and rested his head against hers. He remembered something that someone told him a long, long time ago back home. It took him a while to remember that it was his aunt that told him. His memory of her were fuzzy, but still clearer than the memory of everyone else, except for his father and sister.

"_You know, junior; when you find yourself a cute female that's not all too repulsed by our family of freaks, just remember to do everything you can to keep yourself close to her heart. A juicy set of muscles and a nice hairdo might be what attracts at first, but as soon they notice that's all there is, they'll leave. Wanna know three simple rules that are sure to keep a girl? Number one: tell her what she means to you! You don't need to tell her every minute, every day; your words will lose their meaning that way. But tell her every now and then, tell her how much she means to you and make sure that she knows you love her! Girls love that kind of talk! Number two: Never lie to her! Because she WILL find out the truth sooner or later and when she does, oh boy, you'll be in trouble! And number three, the most important thing: make her laugh. As often as you can, get her to laugh! Unless you want her to think that you're a dull, boring bum. And nobody likes a dull, boring bum!"_

Bentley grinned slightly. He remembered that he liked his aunt, she was both funny and wise at the same time! But that was about all he could remember...

_Make her laugh?_ He glanced down at Priscilla. _No problemo! B-but, I still need to tell her that I love her... That's right! As soon as she wakes up, I'll say it to her! No more chicken out! I'm ain't no coward, I'm a...!_ He hesitated and had to think for a while. _What was it now? Somethin' that begins with a B... Boule? No, that's a game... Budapest? Nah, that's a town or somethin'... Buddha? Oh gods no, I ain't THAT fat!..._

His thoughts were interrupted by a loud laughter from the canyon below. His head snapped around, facing the tunnels exit and he felt Priss stir in his lap.

"W-what?" She mumbled sleepily, awoken from the laughter. Believing that it was just her imagination, she decided to try and go back to sleep. But then they heard the sound of a rock land amongst other rocks, followed by the rumbling, dumb laughter again.

"Ey, big guy! Will ya knock that shit out already?! Ya gonna start some fuckin' avalanche or somethin', an' I ain't plannin' on gettin' buried alive!"

She sprung awake and she and Bentley looked at each other. That young, annoying, prepubescent voice could only belong to one person: Caleb. They crawled over to the edge and peeked down into the gorge.

Yep. It was Caleb alright. Caleb and his big friend. Mongo, wasn't it? Priss' hand went up and lightly touched the wounds on her cheek. Bentley saw the gesture and frowned. She tried to hide it by scratching right underneath her eye. He turned his head away, not quite sure if he bought the facade.

Caleb and Mongo were down at the bottom, following the dried up riverbend. When Caleb wasn't looking, Mongo would pick up a rock and throw away, only to laugh when he heard the sound of the rock hitting the walls. It was obvious that his friend didn't appreciate the rock throwing as much as himself.

A rock crashed into the walls above them, causing rubble to fall down, and Caleb snapped around, pointing a finger at the much larger creature.

"HEY! I said knock that shit out!" He growled, his angry voice bouncing off the walls in the gorge. "Or we're turning back right NOW! An' ya can spend the rest of the day in that lil' room! Doesn't that sound fun?" Mongos ears drooped and he shook his head, emitting a whining groaning sound. "Oh, it doesn't?! Then, STOP throwin' rock 'round us! It's creepin' me the fuck out!"

Mongo stared down in the ground and pouted as they begun to walk again.

"So, THAT'S Calebs monster?" Bentley said pondering, his sudden voice got Priss to jump in surprise. "Funny, that kid's been workin' for Jonas longer than I've been workin' for Rango, but I ain't even seen the monster 'til now!" He chuckled. "Funny!"

Suddenly Mongo bent down, rather quick considering his massive body size, picked up a rock and chucked it up at the tunnel. He grinned to himself, happy that Caleb didn't notice anything, and waited eagerly for the sound of rocks tumbling down. But that wasn't what he heard. Instead, he heard a painful yelp.

The rock had hit Bentley on the nose. He winced loudly and withdrew from the ledge, his hands clamped around his nose.

"By do theze thigs happed to be?" He winced and lowered his head, his ears drooping.

"Are ya okay?" Priss asked and reached her hand towards his nose.

"Do! By dose hurts!"

"Lemme see that..." Priss pried his hands away from his long snout.

The rock had hit him on the side of the large, black button and cracked a hole in the skin. It was bleeding a little bit, both from the nose and the wound, so Priss used a corner of the blanket to wipe it off. He winced and Priss rolled her eyes. "Don't be a big baby now!" She accidentally touched the wound, which made Bentley whimper in pain again. "Oh c'mon, I barely touched ya!"

"E-ey! By dose ids sedsitiv, aldright?!"

"Even a five-year old could endure it!"

Bentley whimpered in response and his head drooped even more.

Mongo stood and stared with a shocked expression at the tunnel. Caleb noticed that Mongo had stopped and turned around at the gawking, overgrown mountain lion. "What's the matter now?" He asked, slightly annoyed. He hadn't noticed Mongo throwing the rock, nor heard the yelp.

Mongo pointed a large, black claw at the wall.

"Sorry, big guy! No climbin' today! Let's just get this over with, aye? I've got a feelin' they'll notice we're gone soon. They might not give a rats ass 'bout me, but I doubt they'll like the idea of ya runnin' 'round freely!"

Mongo looked from his friend, up to the canyon wall and then down to the little aye-aye again. He grunted and picked up a new rock. Maybe it was the rock that yelped? Maybe it hurts when he throws them? Maybe rocks had their own lives too?

"C'mon, what's the matter? You're not rooted to the ground, are ya?"

The giant placed the rock as gently as he could on a nearby boulder and trotted away to his friend, still in deep thought; could rocks have minds of their own? The giant kept asking himself that and pondered over the psychological life of the rock while he steadily followed Caleb to their destination.

Despite Priscillas nagging, Bentley would run one of his large paws up to his nose and wipe it across his sleeve, leaving a red line on the already soiled, used-to-be-white fabric. He saw the blood and shivered.

"Ab godda bleed to death!" He squeaked and was rewarded with an annoyed frown from Priss.

"No, Bentley. You're NOT gonna bleed to death. Ya just got a really nice hit, that's all!"

"Dice?" He narrowed his eyes at her. "Id wat udiverse would this coudt as dice?"

Suddenly his eyes widened, ears flattened against his neck and he scrunched up his nose. Priss tilted her head and was just about to ask him what was wrong when he started to draw several, quick breaths.

"Ah... ah... ah... AH...!" Priss' eyes widened and threw the blanket over herself just before Bentley sneezed. "AAACHOOOOO!" His entire body jerked forward as he sneezed into the crook of his arm.

Priss peeked out from the blanket and couldn't help but to giggle. "Gesundheit!"

He sniffed and nodded, glancing down on his arm and saw a big splatter of blood. He screamed a rather unmanly scream; "EEEEEEEEEEEEKK! I'M GONNA DIE!" He started shaking his arm violently, as if trying to shake the blood off. "EW! EW! EW! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!"

Priss rolled her eyes. "Well, at least yer nose ain't all clogged up no more!"

The hyena stopped shaking his arm and looked at her with a horrified expression. Not knowing whether to laugh or cry, he let out some sort of laughing sob. "Man, this is so gross!"

…

Sam woke up. He didn't know when, but it had to be sometime after sunrise. The others were already awake.

He groaned and rubbed his eye. He hadn't slept well. A strange, gnawing feeling in his guts had been keeping him awake for a long time before he finally fell asleep. He remembered seeing Priss jolt awake because of a nightmare, shortly followed by Bentley. Both of them immediately searched for each others comfort, and by some strange reason it made Sam feel even more miserable to see those two together. He had no feelings what-so-ever against Priscilla, as a matter of fact she could be pretty annoying at times, but seeing those two huddle up next to each other reminded him about Belle. Reminded him all too much about him and Belle. He felt... lonely.

The whole town knew, and loved, mayor Lynx' sweet and kindhearted daughter; Isabelle Lynx. She always had a smile on her face and a kind word to say to everyone. Even the roughians from the saloons became instant gentlemen whenever she was around.

Sam worked in one of the saloons. Pedros saloon. The most dull saloon in the world, located in the outskirts of the big city: Diego City. They barely had any customers at all, except for the regulars. People would choose to go to the more lively saloons down the main street. And standing behind the bar handing out drinks and cactus juice to five people was a really boring and repetitive job. But somebody had to make money for the family, since dad was out in the mountains, digging for gold. Not that neither of them made that much money.

However, for some reason, Belle would always come to the saloon sometime during the day. Why someone like her would come to a place like Pedros saloon was beyond Sams reach of understanding. But he didn't complain. Every time the two young bobcats made eyecontact, they would both blush and look away. It seemed like the whole town knew that Sam had feelings for Belle, and according to Belles friends; she felt mutual feelings for him too.

He felt a knot twisting and turning in his stomach when he thought about her. Thinking of the morning she was found, lifeless on her bedroom floor with a bite in her neck. The cause of death was obvious: she had been killed with snake poison.

The whole town mourned as soon as the news got out, it seemed to drain all the happiness out of the residents. When it reached Pedros saloon, Sams world shattered...

Sam clasped at the blanket and fought the tears back. Anger coursed through his body, making his blood boil. _Curse ya, Blake! I curse ya to hell!_ Sam snickered to himself. That's probably where the serpent was right now, burning in hell.

Blake and Jolene would every now and then come to Diego City. Jolene came because of her friends, Lin and Ying Cho, two red panda sisters who, with the help of Jolene herself, got to start up a spa. Jolene was always the guest of honor. Blake came for three reasons: drinking, gambling and girls. He was known for being a ruthless murderer, but as he wasn't wanted in the territory, sheriff Woodrow and his deputy Gus couldn't do anything to arrest him. Not unless he started a fight, which he seldom did. Probably to stay on Belles good side and avoid a scolding from his sister.

Belle trusted Blake. She didn't think he was evil all the way through. She claimed she saw something good in his eyes. And Sam eventually believed her.

But they were both fools.

Sam started grinding his teeth to stop himself from screaming. He hated Blake more than anything else, he had longed for the day when he finally got to shoot him. But when he finally picked up Rangos gun and fired at the big snake, he felt different. Ever since Blake froze up with the shocked look on his face, Sam had felt a gnawing, nauseating feeling. The feeling you get when you just done something wrong. The feeling of guilt.

But Blake deserved it! Blake had it coming!

But, what if Blake wasn't the killer after all? He's not the only snake in the desert.

Sams eyes opened wide. Bentley had started saying something about it, but Scrange interrupted him. The young bobcat frowned. Something about this didn't feel right.

"Ya okay, kiddo?" Hicks sudden voice jerked Sam back to reality. He turned his head and looked up at the tall coyote.

"I'm fine!" He spat and got up. He had to look up to see the coyote in the eyes. "Never been better!"

Hicks raised an eyebrow and turned around. "Fine, just checkin'..." He mumbled and shrugged before walking back to the table to sit down with Scrange and the two porcupines. Sam frowned when he saw that Bentley and Priscilla were missing. As usual. Rango was also missing, but he was probably just off to take care of that stupid bird of his.

He rolled his eyes before following Hicks to the table and sat down. Within seconds, a plate with burnt bacon and beans were placed in front of him. He scrunched up his nose.

"Beans again?" He asked skeptically and pushed the plate away.

Fledge put his hands on his hips and began to angrily rant something in Spanish. Flitch gave him the shortened version: "Basically: you don't like it, then go make yer own"

Sam mumbled something and dug a fork into the charcoal bacon.

"Keep that attitude up, boy, and people are going to think that you are just like Bentley!" Scrange chuckled and dug around with a fork in his food.

Sam put the fork down again and clenched his jaw. He didn't like Bentley. He was an annoying, attention-seeking little asshole. Seriously, he had been making JOKES about Belles death! Sams grip on the fork tightened and a creepy little snicker spread on his lips. _Hope miss Priscilla dies or gets hurt. THEN we'll see how funny he thinks it is when HIS loved one is taken away!_ He chuckled grimly. The others around the table stopped what they were doing, Hicks froze with a fork halfway to his mouth. Sam... chuckled?

"A-are ya sure you're okay, kiddo?" Hicks asked once again.

Sam kept grinning as he turned to the coyote. "I killed Blake and avenged Belle. As I said; I've never been better!"

**Really, Sam? That's pretty mean of you to think that, dont'cha think? Crazy cat...**

**Lol, anyway, haven't got much to say this time xD!**

**See y'all next chapter :D!**


	41. The Celebrity

**Alright! Next chapter here :P! **

**Oh, and if you haven't read it already; I've got a lil' surprise for all of you who likes Bentley, and wants a glimpse of his childhood :P! It's called; "The Bedtime Story"**

***** Chapter Fortyone : The Celebrity *****

To finally see her brother sleep untroubled, made Jolene realize just how tired she was herself. She yawned and moved the half-empty satchel out of the way so she could sleep.

Those herbs had worked MIRACLES! Docs knowledge about herbs were about as wide as a supermodels waist, so they had to wake Wounded Bird up. He didn't recognize the herbs, but he didn't believe they were toxic. Not sure how to use it, they boiled some tea of one fourth of it, and another fourth part they slabbed on his wounds as an ointment. It didn't take long until Blakes fever went down and he fell in a deep, calm sleep. As soon as he seemed stable, Jake left. Doc stayed for another hour before he too went back to bed. However, Jolene stayed. As usual.

Blake snored quietly, all rolled up into a bun. His sister gave him one last nuzzle on the cheek before rolling up on the floor next to him. This day, and night, had been exhausting so it didn't take long until she finally fell asleep.

Blake was still asleep next morning, so Jolene carefully and as silent as she could, slithered past him and out on the street. The sun was already high on the sky, spreading its warmth over the town. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the warm rays that hit her body.

"G'mornin' Miss Jolene!" A little voice squeaked next to her.

She looked down and saw the little kangaroo rat girl. "G'mornin' Mattie!" She responded with a smile.

Mattie looked up at the rattlesnake with a wide smile. Funny, she didn't seem to be afraid of neither Jolene nor Jake. Blake however... Suddenly the little kangaroo rat looked down at the ground with a worried frown.

"How's yer brother doin'?" She asked, still looking down at the ground, scraping with her foot.

"Much better, I think he's gonna...!" Jolene interrupted her excited answer and looked down at Mattie. She was sobbing. Her big brother had been the first victim of Durangos dusk shootings. "There, there..." Jolene said in a soothing voice and gently curled her tail around the child. She lowered her head down. "What's wrong? It's alright, ya can tell big sister Jo everythin'!" Mattie threw her arms around the snakes snout. Jolene flinched, she wasn't prepared for that. "Umm, it's alright, Mattie...!"

"Pa's gonna take me back to Miss Beans farm later t'day, but I wanna stay 'ere an' fight!" She sobbed into the softer scales between Jolenes eyes. "The monster killed mah brother, an' he almost killed yers too!"

The big snake chuckled softly. "Really, ya wanna stay 'ere an' fight, huh?" Mattie nodded. "What if ya git hurt?"

"Huh?" Mattie stopped sobbing and turned her head, staring into one of Jolenes giant, amber colored eyes.

"What would yer ma an' pa say if they lost another one of their children? Dont'ya think they'd be sad, if they lost a sweet lil' girl like ya?"

Mattie looked down on the ground. "Maybe..."

"Whaddya mean maybe? Of course they'll be sad!" She let go of the child, gently putting her down on the ground again. "And now, if ya'll excuse me, I gotta go an' talk to Jake for a while" She smiled one last time at the child before slithering away to search for her older brother.

"Can I come with ya?!" Mattie sped up to catch up to the snake.

Jolene stopped and tilted her head at Mattie confusedly. "Uh, yeah... Of course!" She said, a little bit surprised. Mattie smiled up at the snake and put a hand on her coils while she followed Jolene to the sheriffs office, to hear if anyone had seen Jake. Shouldn't be too hard, dear Jacob wasn't normally that discreet...

…

The black roadrunner was asleep, her head resting next to her master. Rango was sitting next to her with his legs stretched out, staring up at the roof. Between the boards he could see straw from the above loft sticking out.

Arrows wound hadn't been fatal, thank goodness... However, the bullet had thrashed her muscles on her leg as it passed through and lodged itself between her ribs. It was impossible to get out, and would probably cripple her movements. In other words: her days of adventuring with the gang was over.

Rango clenched his teeth together. _Oh well, she IS gettin' old. Perhaps it's time for her to retire?_ He glanced at the sleeping bird. _She won't like it though..._ He put a gentle hand on the base of her neck, right behind her head and sighed.

Arrow had been his companion for almost thirty years now, and ever since day one, she had been a stuck-up, snobby, vain and incredibly spoiled featherbrain, yet she was also the smartest, bravest and most loyal critter he ever met. Rango chuckled at the many memories of Arrow making a mess wherever she went, pissing or scaring people off. Especially when she threw Clara off her back and into a puddle. Boy, had Clara been mad! Furious! But that didn't stop her from climbing up in the saddle again. The contrary, in fact! And may the gods have mercy if he, Jake or someone else laughed!

_Clara..._ He lowered his head, his hat covering his eyes. He dug around in the pockets of the vest he wore underneath the poncho, and pulled out a ring. A thin gold ring with a tiny diamond. He looked at it and chuckled faintly. He remembered the day he proposed to her. She seemed unimpressed and skeptical to the size of the rock, but he could tell that on the inside, she was happier than she would ever be, and especially to confess! He could see it in her eyes. His vision was getting foggy. He cursed and wiped the tears away from his eyes, putting the ring back in his pocket and stood up. His movements also woke Arrow up. Arrow tried to stand up too, but the pain that jolted through her chest, leg and wing made her fall to the ground again with a pained squawk.

Rango knelt by the birds head and ran his hand over her sharp, pointy beak. "Sorry girl, gotta go see the guys. I'll tell Victor to watch over ya, that okay?" The bird put her head on her masters leg, her crest flat against her skull. She looked like she was begging him to stay. Rango started grinding his teeth. Great, how about some guilt? "I'm sorry Arrow, but I've gotta see the others! An' c'mon, ya like Victor, dont'ya?" Arrow sighed in response and turned her head away. Fine... She seemed to be saying.

Rango stood up again and looked around for the gray squirrel, finding him sleeping with his back against the wall. Victor was a good kid, and he and Arrow really got along! If he wasn't already working for Jonas, Rango would definitely ask Victor to join the batch.

He rustled the young gray squirrel awake and told him to watch Arrow while he was gone. Victor nodded sleepily and walked over to the bird, sitting down next to her. Rango grinned and started walking to the eastern com. room. He had told Hicks that they would meet up in the 'saloon' the next morning. Hopefully they were already there, sitting by the bar and wait while listening to the loud laughter of Jonas' men didn't sound all too appetizing at the moment.

At first when he entered the com. room, he couldn't see his men at all. But then he heard Hicks shout his name and he spotted them around one of the largest, round tables. He made their way to them and frowned when he saw that two were missing.

"So, Bentley and Priscilla...?"

"Left sometime before we all woke up, yes" Hicks filled in and refilled his glass with one of the bottles standing on the table.

Rango sighed and sat down on one of the chairs. "I'm still tryin' to get over the fact that Bentley's in love..."

"Yeah, him outta all people..." Hicks mumbled and took a swig from his glass. Then he began to chuckle. "Wonder how long time it would take before she shot him, if he was the same way he was three years ago?"

"I dunno, a day maybe!" Rango shrugged and grinned. "So, ya believe me now? What did I say?" Hicks mumbled something and emptied his glass. Rango chuckled. "Of course I was right! Hell, I'm always right!"

"How's Arrow doin'?" Sam asked with a frown, trying to switch subject.

"Oh, she'll be alright" Rango kicked back on his chair and rested his boots on one of the empty chairs. "But I think her adventuring days are over though..." He looked down on his boots. "I don't think she'll be able to walk naturally, the bullet is stuck between the ribs and the chest bone pretty far down, even the leg is damaged! Some of the muscle tissue in her leg was thrashed when the bullet passed through. An' movin' the wing seems to hurt a lot too!" He shook his head. "Poor gal... An' me forcin' her to move on didn't exactly make it better..."

"Oh, we're sorry to hear that, Rango..." Scrange said looking down in his glass. The others around the table nodded and murmured in agreement.

Coral tilted her head sadly. _Poor Arrow..._

"Nah, don't be. She didn't wanna admit it, but she IS gettin' old. I think it's time for her to retire" He chuckled. "I just wish I could too!" He added jokingly.

They were sitting around the table for about an hour, waiting, until Bentley and Priscilla finally came back.

Hicks had told them all last night that they were going to meet Rango in the eastern com. room the next morning, giving Priss an uneasy feeling in her stomach. Going back to the place where she probably made one of her lifes biggest mistake ever wasn't something she looked forward too.

She took a short detour to their com. room to drop off the blanket and fetch the rest of her belongings; the guns and the belt, her boots and after digging around for a bit, she found Bentleys voodo-doll. She brought it back to him, but he just shook his head and grinned.

"Nah, ya can keep it if ya wanna! I've been dragging around that thing for years now, I think it's gettin' real' tired of me now!" He chuckled, giving Priss another puzzling thought to think about; IT was getting tired of him? But she decided that it was just another one of his weird ideas and didn't think about too much.

They turned to the corridor leading to the com. room, Priss bit her lip and stared down in the floor. She was gonna get in trouble here for sure! Although this time the guys would be with her, so hopefully she wouldn't attract too much attention?

She was wrong.

As soon as Bentley and her came into the large, round room, everyone stopped talking and turned to her. She took a few steps closer to Bentley, he sensed her worry and put an arm around her hip. The surprise was clear in Priss' face when Jonas' men met her with greeting smiles and friendly nods. Some even hollered a "g'mornin'" to her. Bentley didn't know what to do so he glanced down at her. She shrugged, just as confused as him. When she sat down by the table, Rango and the others gave her puzzled looks.

"Don't look at me! I have no idea!" She whispered to them and returned a nod she got from GoldJack, as he sat on the same chair by the bar as yesterday.

Scrange picked up a bottle of cactus juice to refill his glass, but Bentley snatched it out of his hand. "Yoink!" He said and hurried to sit down next to Priss.

Scrange looked bemused. "Really?" He said and tilted his head before grasping a new bottle. Bentley snickered and began to chug down straight from the bottle.

A glass was put down in front of Priss, adding to her confusion. She turned around and saw Hog grinning down at her, his large, yellow tusks protruding from the corners of his mouth. "On the house!" He rumbled.

Priss raised an eyebrow at him. "Thanks, but I didn't think ya served ladies here?"

"No offense, gal..." He said with a wink. "But someone brave 'nuff to humiliate the Gajerras like that is without the shadow of a doubt not especially ladylike!"

Surprised looks from the gang around the table turned to Priss. She chuckled nervously as Bentley spat out what seemed to be an entire ocean of cactus juice in Scranges face.

"T-the... G-Gajerra... b-brothers?!" He coughed while Scrange tried to wipe the strong liquor out of his eyes before it burned a hole in them.

"Aye, judgin' from yer faces, she hasn't told y'all 'bout it?" GoldJack left the bar and walked up to the table.

"N-no! Ya kinda failed to fill us in on that, Prissy!" Bentleys ears flicked and he raised an eyebrow at her.

She looked down at the table. "Yeah, sorry 'bout that..." She mumbled and nervously fumbled with her hands underneath the table.

Bentley frowned worriedly and was about to say something when Rango cut in. "Ya humiliated 'em, gal? Interestin'! This I gotta hear!" He sounded enthusiastic and scooted closer, leaning his elbows on the table.

Priss looked up at the faces around the table, eager to hear the story of how she managed to defeat the Gajerras in a game of wits. "Umm..." She glanced at GoldJack, who chuckled and waved at her to go on. "Alright, I guess... " And so she told the gang everything, how she went to the 'saloon' to check it out (and maybe for a drink or two) to when the Gajerra brothers arrived, and how she managed by pissing both of them off by burping fire in Panchos face, and ruining one of Hogs platters on Franciscos face.

Bentley was trying to keep a cool face, but he just had to admit: she was the craziest girl in the world! He burst out in an uncontrollable laugh when she got to the fire-burping part, and she had to wait for him to regain his breath before she could go on. But suddenly, he stopped snickering at her story as another bad thought appeared in his mind; _Now they're definitely gonna hurt her!_ He thought and felt the lump return to his throat. _They almost cut my ears off for gluing their hats to their heads..._ He threw a worried look at her as she talked, occasionally doing some gesture with her hands to put emphasis on certain parts. _If they touch as much as a single hair on her head I'll..._

Suddenly she turned to Bentley and saw his worried frown. "What's wrong?" He jumped when she spoke to him, giving her a careful laugh in response.

"How come ya ALWAYS do the fun stuff when I'm not 'round?" He said sadly and shook his head. "Ya promised ya'd tell me next time ya'd do somethin' crazy!" He lowered his head and pouted.

Priss giggled and rolled her eyes. "Sorry, NEXT time, I promise!"

"So, YOU are Priscilla, huh?" An unfamiliar voice said. She turned around and saw a tall, slim raccoon come walking up to their table. He wore a capote coat, a bag thrown over his shoulder and a hat with two reddish brown feathers stuck in the band. Black hair were hanging down from his head and his eyes had an odd, greenish blue color. Something about him made Priss feel uncomfortable. She knew one thing for certain: this wasn't the kind of guy you'd wanna turn your back to, unless you want to get a knife stuck between your shoulders.

Rango frowned. "Jet?!" He said in disbelief. "What're ya doin' here? Ain't ya workin' in the Alabama-Nest?"

"Yeah, I was!" The raccoon, Jet, said and sat down on an empty chair, after dusting it off with his fluffy, striped tail. "But since Jonas' just got a massive order of illegal weapons to some Mexican desperado gang, he sent a telegram to me that he needed help shipping the weapons from this nest to Mexico. So a small group of me and a few other men arrived here a couple of days ago." He blew a string of black, thin hair out of his face. "We're not all gathered up yet, we're still waiting for a few more men; Gringo, Jonesy, Burt, Olliander..."

"Really? We ain't seen ya 'round here, or anyone else from Alabama for that matter..." Hicks said and raised a skeptical eyebrow.

Jet shrugged. "I don't know, maybe they're hiding somewhere? I'll admit I was sleeping all day yesterday!" He glanced at Priss and smirked. "But I heard all about you and your exploits, well done! Not sure if it was bravery or stupidity though... I've heard they're both furious right now!"

"I think it was both!" Hog snickered. "But that's was pure entertainment right there!"

"Yeah, whether ya like it or not, you're a celebrity here now, girly!" GoldJack said and nodded in agreement. "First ya surely put Caleb in place real' good, an' then ya give the two reptilian devils one helluva noseburn!"

Priss laughed nervously. "Whoops!"

Rango chuckled. "Damn it, princess, sometimes ya bring almost as much trouble Bentley does!" Coral shook her head and cocked her head at the lizard. "Alright then, sometimes ya bring more!"

"That's even possible?" Hicks asked skeptically.

"Apparently!"

"I call bullshit on that! NOBODY can raise more hell than Bentley!"

"Except maybe for his girl?"

"Ahum! Good thing we're not sittin' here then, hearin' everythin' ya say!"

Jet looked at everyone in Rangos gang with an amused snicker. We had Rango, the big boss himself, and of course Hicks, he never seemed to leave Rangos side. Scrange, wonder what someone like him was doing in a gang like that? The two porcupines, one of them doesn't even speak English and the one who does hates to talk so there's never actually any use in trying to communicate with any of them! The other newcomer, Sam, was it not? He seemed way too young to be hanging out with outlaws. But then again, so were Caleb. And of course, Coral; just as stupidly loyal as Hicks towards the bountyhunter.

Jet eyes locked on the two last members of the group: Priscilla, the female deputy of a small town in the middle of nowhere (who just happens to sit on a massive, aquatic fortune) and Bentley, a farmhand with breathtakingly severe self-control issues. Jet remembered one time when he woke up and realized his coat had been sewn shut in the sleeves. And another time when he walked through a door with a bucket of fish balancing on top. It had taken WEEKS to get the stench out from the coat! Bentley had been the culprit behind both of the schemes.

Jet noticed that the less you reacted to the pranks, the less likely you were to be pranked again. No wonder why hotheaded folks like Wes, Bob, Linderman, Gringo etc. were the constant victims! And no wonder why there were at LEAST fifty men who wanted to see him suffer. The fifty men AND probably the rest of Jonas' employees. That would bring it to almost 200 men, not bad!

Jet studied the couple. It was obvious that they cared about each other. Not especially smart of them. At least Priscilla seemed to try and hide it as much as she could, but the hyena? He was completely lost to her. One could see it in his eyes every time he as much as glanced in her direction. Big mistake. Considering all the enemies he had managed to make, probably not intentionally though, the smart thing he should do would be to cover up his weak spots. And this girl here was obviously a HUGE weak spot.

Suddenly Rango said something that made the gang chuckle in unison, except for Bentley; he doubled over with a roaring laughter. A follow-up comment from Priss made him laugh so hard he threatened to fall off the chair. But that guy always had it easy to laugh, he seemed to laugh at everything that happened! Even after he got beaten to a pulp by the Gajerras!

_Wonder what he would do if he knew how much pain she'll bring him once we're all gathered?_ The raccoon thought to himself and felt for a moment sorry for the poor guy. But then he remembered what the bastard had done to his capote coat, and immediately began to look forward to see the look on his smug face!

The raccoon felt someone staring at him and looked around, noticing that Coral was the one giving him the evil eye. She had seen him studying Bentley and Priss with a grim grin and opened her mouth a notch, baring her pearly white fangs as a warning. Jet raised his eyebrows and decided to glare at the roof instead. Coral folded her fangs back again and closed her mouth, still keeping a close eye on Jet.

"Alright guys, back to business!" Rango chuckled and rubbed his eye, trying to wipe away the tears of laughter. "Fledge, Flitch! Ya two go back to the communion room an' find my money; I'll try to convince Larry to let me rent his roadrunner, the gray one y'know. Scrange, Coral and Sam, I want ya three to do go back to Dirt an' check out the situation over there, rapport everything ya see back to me. DON'T get caught! We can't do another jailbreak, I doubt Thunder Wing will help us out again after what happened to his legs" The ones he pointed at nodded and left to do their missions. He looked at the two remaining members of the gang. "Priscilla, Bentley. We four are gonna go see Jonas' in his office. But first, Hicks, ya said ya had somethin' to tell me?"

Hicks nodded. "It's 'bout Bill..."

Rango narrowed his eyes and nodded. "Let's go see him then!" He shot a glance over at Priss and Bentley. "We'll be right back!" And with that, the coyote and the lizard left, leaving the couple by themselves.

Most of the commotion that arose when Priss and Bentley arrived had settled down and Hog and GoldJack retreated back to the bar. Bentley rubbed his still sore nose and looked down into the bottle he held in his hand. Empty.

"Great, so we're gonna have to sit here an' wait for them?" Priss said and emptied the glass she got from Hog in one sweep, holding back a faint cough when the strong liquid trickled down her throat.

"Eeyup!" Bentley said and placed the bottle down on the table with a _dunk._ "Owch!" He said when he stung himself on one of the spikes of the bottle. "Really!? I don't get it! Why're they makin' the bottles all... spikey?!" He muttered and shook his hand with the stung finger. "It hurts, damn it!"

Priss giggled. "It's called cactus juice for a reason!"

"... B'cause it's made from that water ya can find in cactuses, right?"

"No Bentley. It's not! Ya shouldn't even DRINK that stuff, it's poisonous!"

"Ah! That would explain the hallucinations!"

"Oh, for cryin' out loud, Bentley! Don't tell me you've...?"

"Hey! What was I supposed to do?! I was thirsty! Although, I should've figured out that somethin' was wrong when that purple alligator appeared an' started singin' Danish folksongs..."

"Danish folksongs? Purple... alligator..?" She buried her face in her hand and giggled through her clenched teeth. "Why do ya do these things to yourself?"

"How am I else supposed to know what'll happen?"

"By using common sense?"

"Common what?"

"Exactly!" She doubled over the table and laughed while Bentley grinned his usual, silly grin.

Suddenly a loud scream was heard, followed by the sound of a table crashing. Everyones heads turned to the riot and at the sight of the two Komodo dragons most of the heads were turned away again. Among the broken rubbles of a table, a scruffy looking fennec was rolled up into a ball, clutching his bleeding head. Priss felt her heart come to a stop when she saw the ear Pancho held in his hands. Francisco was standing behind him with his arms crossed, looking annoyed.

Pancho snorted and threw the ear at the fennec. "Ya any idea how lucky y'are I ain't cuttin' o' t'other ear too!?" He hissed. Francisco rolled his eyes and walked past the tables toward the bar, the men avoiding eyecontact with the two giant lizards. Pancho growled and slid his knife back into its scabbard before following his brother. Hog looked at them with a disgusted face.

"What did he do, breathe?" The boar grunted, filled up two glasses and placed them in front of the Gajerras.

"That n' spillin' a whole load of cactus juice all'ova me! That knucklehead had it comin'!" Pancho replied and snatched the bottle away from the boars hands and chugged down from both the bottle and the little glass.

Priss looked at the fennec getting help to get up on his feet by Wes and a tall, lanky chicken she guessed was Bob. Blood was dripping from what was left of the fennecs ear as he staggered around, one bloody hand covering the stump and whimpering in pain. Priss' felt the color leave her face and looked at Bentley from the corner of her eye. He had tensed up, his ears pressed flat against his neck. When Francisco turned around and spotted the couple a dark snicker spread on his face, causing the mane on Bentleys neck stand out like spikes.

"Ey, Pan!" The Komodo dragon said and nudged his brother in the side with his elbow. "Lookie who we've got 'ere!"

Curious, Pancho turned around and chewed on his cigar. "Well, well, if it ain't t'lil' deputy?" He growled lowly and narrowed his eyes. "N' she ain't 'lone this time!"

"Great... we should've sneaked outta here b'fore they saw us, shouldn't we? " Priss mumbled and Bentley replied with a nod.

"Eeyup..."

Priss braced herself and managed to pull off a relatively convincing cocky grin. "So, ya two back for more, huh?" She regretted the words immediately as they left her mouth.

The dragons however, found that amusing. "Not quite!" Francisco chuckled and emptied his glass in one swig before walking towards Priss' and Bentleys table. "We we're hopin' we'd bump 'to ya sooner or later" He said, giving his brother a stern look as he noticed that Pancho began to play with the knife on his hip. Pancho stopped fingering on the hilt and shrugged, following his brother once again. "We wanna 'pologize t'ya. Our b'havior yesterday weren't that exemplary, was it?" The tall, black lizards leaned forward on the table. "Sorry Miss, but me brother n' me didn't mean t'hurt ya. We just wanna have some fun, y'know. Considerin' the boy you're hangin' 'round with we'd think ya could handle a joke!"

Priss raised an eyebrow. A joke? _Sure, gettin' strangled an' mutilated by a psycho is such a classic, ain't it?_ She thought to herself.

Underneath all that thick hair, Bentley narrowed his crimson eyes. "So, ya two Komorons were the ones who hurt her, isn't that right?"

"Yeah, that would've been Pancho. N' you're sooo sorry 'bout it, aint'cha brother?" Francisco shot his brother a stern look. Pancho snorted and circled around the table. He reminded Priss a lot about a vulture, circling about a dying prey.

"Well, if that's all, then we're sorry to tell that we have to leave..." Priss said, grabbing Bentleys arm and gently tried to pull him up on his feet.

"Uh, yeah! Good luck with the, eh, ear-chopping business...!" The hyena gritted his teeth in a silly, nervous grin. They tried to get up from the chairs, but Pancho put his large, cold claws on their shoulders and forced them to remain seated.

"Hey! Y'ain't leavin' so soon are ya?" Francisco chuckled and sat down on the chair next to Bentley, throwing a brotherly arm around the hyenas shoulders. "C'mon, stay fer a drink with me brother n' I! Hog!" He hollered at the boar to come with a couple of bottles down to the table, Hog rolled his eyes and did as the Komodo dragon ordered.

"Wish we could, but apparently Jonas wanna talk to us, sooo..." Bentley tried to squirm out of the dragons grip and fumbled for Priscillas hand. "If you'd just let us go we'll..." Pancho slammed one of his hands down on the table, blocking Bentleys hands path.

"No way! We're tryin' t'be hospitable fer once, n' ya got t'bile t'just scurry off like a bunch o' scaredy searats?! Where's yer manners, people?" Francisco said with an annoyed sigh and uncorked one of the bottles just put in front of them with his teeth.

Bentleys ears flattened to his neck again. "You're the one to talk..." He muttered under his breath.

"S'cuse me?" Pancho growled and bared his razorsharp teeth at the hyena. "Ya said somethin', joker?" He leaned closer and from his nostrils gray smoke escaped.

"Nothin'! Just that yer breath smells even worse than yer cigar..." Bentley scrunched up his face in a repulsed grimace. "Y'know, the humans got somethin' called Tic-tacs, why don't ya go try some of 'em? I've heard they're really good 'gainst bad breath!" Bentley snickered nervously at Panchos angry frown and bared teeth. "An' while we're at it, gingivitis is the number one case of good ol' tooth decay. Ya might wanna get 'em chompers looked at by a dentist! I've heard 'bout this really famous dentist in Tombstone called John Hollid... AUGH!"

Pancho hissed angrily, grabbed Bentleys throat and pulled him up, closer to his face. Francisco jumped back and laughed. "I'm gonna skin ya alive, joker!" The angry Komodo dragon hissed and hardened his grip around the jokers throat. "I'll rip yer skin off n' keep ya alive just so ya can see me wearin' it!"

"That's... gross...!" Bentley managed to croak while trying to pry the cold hand away.

Priss got to her feet so fast her chair flew back with a screech and threatened to tip over. "Let go of him, NOW!" She growled, a hand on one of her revolvers. Ready to draw if the dragon didn't do as she said. Pancho slowly turned his head around and grinned menacingly.

"Or what?" He snickered and hardened his grip even more, completely cutting off Bentleys air supply. His big, red eyes widened as he clasped with his hands at the claws around his throat. But despite threatened to get strangled to death, Priss noticed a creepy grin that began to form on his lips. She turned her narrowed eyes back at the Komodo dragon and was about to answer him and draw her guns when Jet intervened.

The raccoon had turned to the men around the table and started a game of poker, so they would have something else to focus on instead of the inevitable clash that would soon happen behind them. But now, he HAD to interfere. If Pancho killed that mangy mutt off now just for the fun of it, he would ruin everything! Okay, ruin everything is a slight exaggeration, but he would definitely mess up the plans!

"Pancho, sorry for interrupting your little fun, but I think you should do as Miss Priscilla says" Jet said, crossing his arms behind his back and tilted his head, the red feathers in his hat bobbing. "You're already gonna get in trouble for slicing poor Ebs ear clean off, isn't that enough for today?"

The two Komodo dragons snorted simultaneously at the raccoon and Francisco was about to come with a crude answer when he noticed the stern look in Jets blueish green eyes. The piece of gray fluff was serious. Francisco sighed in annoyance and cocked his head at his brother.

"Y'eard the lady n' t'raccoon, let her friend go" He said and Pancho raised a skeptical eyebrow before reluctantly letting go, sending Bentley crashing down on the chair again. Jet rolled his eyes and sat down on his chair again, resuming the card game.

The hyena was coughing and rubbed his throat with one hand while leaning on the table with the other. Priscilla frowned at the Komodo dragon, sat down on her chair again and had to scoot closer.

"B'sides, Pan..." Francisco continued. "Ya keep getting' yourself worked up n' you're gonna lose 'em stitches n' yer eye'll fall out 'gain!"

Pancho clenched his jaws together and turned to Priscilla, his pupils thinned to slits. He stood between her and Bentley, and leaned down in level with her eyes.

"So, ya didn't like it when I was kiddin' 'round with him, eh?" He chewed on his cigar and chuckled grimly.

She leaned back and shook her head. "Y'two got a very fucked up sense of humor..." She snarled and cast a worried glance at the hyena behind him, still coughing and trying to regain his normal breath. But at least the creepy grin had vanished.

The two Komodo dragons began to laugh. "That's so very true!" Francisco slapped his knee. "But so does this guy! He can laugh at ev'rythin'! Ain't that true, boy?" He threw his arm around Bentleys shoulders again, making the hyena growl.

"ALMOST everythin'!" He muttered with a surprisingly serious voice. "An' ya Komorons are really NOT funny at all. You're the ones who can't take any jokes here! Ya two creepy peckerwoods are nothin' but, pardon my French, a couple of tightassed, overgrown, hypocritical assholes!"

The reptiles didn't like that. Not one bit. First, they both glared at him with angry frowns and cold eyes that could cut through bones. His ears drooped in fear as they looked at him like he was a piece of meat. But then Francisco loosened up a bit and chuckled. "Alright then, let's talk 'bout somethin' else, eh?" The giant lizard said, digging his sharp claws into Bentleys shoulder. "We heard ya don't like blood, is that correct?" He lifted his other hand and held up the palm in front of the hyena.

"What's that gotta do with anythin'?" Priss hissed, her hand was about to travel down to her guns again but a heavy hand on her shoulder made her tense up and glance up at the Komodo dragon looming over her. Pancho had put his hand on her shoulder as he leaned over her and reached out one of his claws, cutting a jack in the other Komodo dragons palm.

"The b-blood's inside the body for a reason! I-I think it's s'posed to stay in there, y'know!" Bentley gulped and leaned away from the blood dripping out from Franciscos hand and onto the table.

"Oh c'mon now, Bentley! It's just a little blood! What's the big deal?" Francisco chuckled. "What 'bout her blood? Would that b'different?"

Bentley growled and lashed out with his fangs at the giant lizard. He didn't bite him, just slammed his jaws together an inch away from Franciscos face with a loud bang, causing the Komodo dragon to flinch and jerk back. "Don't even think 'bout it, Komoron!" He growled with the mane on his back standing straight up.

Jet lowered his head between his shoulders as he tried to hide behind the cards he held in his hands. "Oh boy..."

Francisco hissed angrily and was about to stand up from his chair and attack the hyena when he heard the clicking of two hammers. He looked over at Priscilla and saw that she had pulled her two revolvers. One she held pointing straight up, pressing the muzzle against Panchos jaw. The other one she held pointed at Francisco. Both of the hammers were cocked and she stared at Francisco with clenched jaws and furrowed brows.

"That's enough!" She hissed and waved at the Komodo dragon to get up from the chair at the same time as she pressed the barrel deeper into Panchos chin, forcing him back.

Francisco chuckled in amusement while his brother snarled. "So, ya got a couple o' toys now, huh?" He said while taking a step back. "But d'ya really know how t'use 'em?"

"Oh I dunno..." She said with a shrug. "First time I held a gun I was five years old, then I got a pair of Army's when I was eight. I THINK I'm pretty sure how to use a gun now!" She said and put emphasis on her words by pushing Pancho away from her using the gun.

"Is that so?" Francisco grinned. "But would ya shoot us?"

"I've shot outlaws like ya two brutes before. Why should this time be any different?" She narrowed her eyes. "Besides, you've both been pestering me an' Bentley for way too long time now! My profession has thought me patience, but ev'ryone's got their limits!"

"Besides, if she wouldn't shoot, we might instead!" Another voice said, making Francisco snap around. Rango and Hicks were back, aiming their guns at the two Komodo dragons. Rango shook his head at Bentley and Priss. "Unbelievable, we leave y'two alone for a short moment an' ya already managed t'get yourself in trouble with these two lowlifes!"

Bentley pointed a stiff finger at Francisco. "They started it!"

"We don't care who started it, 'cuz we're finishin' it!" Hicks said with a frown. "C'mon, y'two!"

Priscilla holstered her guns and walked around the table to Rango and Hicks. Bentley growled faintly as he passed Pancho and flattened his ears to his neck. Pancho replied by hissing angrily, letting the split, yellowish tongue dart out from his maws.

"Bentley, enough!" Rango barked, and Bentley listened and scurried over to his friends. "We've already made Jonas wait the entire mornin' for us, an' he ain't known for his patience so lets move!" He put his gun back in it's holster and gave the Komodo dragons a last, suspicious look before turning around and start walking back.

"'Til we meet again, sweetheart!" Francisco said with a cold grin that sent shivers down Priss' spine.

She ignored the lizard and followed Rango and Hicks out from the room. Bentley went last, throwing paranoid glances over his shoulder every now and then. As soon as the four were out of the room, Jet turned with an angry scowl at the Komodo dragons.

"Was that necessary?" He spat. "Do you two have ANY IDEA how much I'm risking here, how much we're ALL risking?!"

"Relax, Johnny!" Francisco chuckled and sat down on his chair again, reaching for the bottle of cactus juice Hog left on the table. "We were just messin' 'bout!"

"I'm well aware of that!" The raccoon continued. "And the name is Jet!"

"Fine! We were just jokin' 'round with 'em!"

"Really? It looked to me like you two could've killed them any minute! And if one of them were to die right now, we'd have to come up with a new way to get rid of Rango and his men! Oh, and did I mention that the others are arriving tomorrow? WE'RE RUNNING OUT OF TIME!" The raccoon was furious. He stood up from the table and walked over to where the Komodo dragons sat and leaned on their table. He took a deep breath and counted to ten before he continued with a much calmer voice: "Rango and his goons are like a zit in the nose to us. He KNOWS we're up to something! We have to be careful with our actions and what we say. You two could've caused a disaster today!" Pancho growled, stood up from his chair and leaned closer to Jets face.

"Listen 'ere, ya lil' rodent!" Francisco said with an annoyed hiss. "We ain't takin no orders from NO ONE! We do whatever we want n' if ya got a problem with that, well, tough luck!" He kicked back on his chair and the corners of his mouth were tugged up in a smug smile. "B'sides, we're just warmin' up! Givin' 'em both a lil' scare ev'ry now n' then. Soon, Bentley will be t'scared n' paranoid t'let her outta his sight!"

Jet tilted his head to the side. "And that's good because...?"

Now it was Panchos turn to grin. "T'more psycho he gits, t'better t'show!"

**Phew, sorry for the row of ridiculously long chapters xD! (this chapter alone is nine pages, woah!)**

**And don't worry, soon there'll be more focus on Dirt, I promise xD!**


	42. The Kings office

**Sorry it's late, guys :/... Our internet has been rebelling against us again...**

**42 = the meaning of life, lol :D**

**Ironically, this is another one of those frustratingly dull chapters...**

**Meh, anyway, try to enjoy ;D!**

***** Chapter Fortytwo : The Kings Office *****

Jonas' office was big. Or correction: humungous! It was like stepping into a hall of colors!

On his floor was a big rug, woven in intricate patterns of red, green and yellow against a blue background, similar to the band around the vipers trademark top hat. His walls were lined up with bookshelves crammed with both books and all sorts of odd knick-knacks, and at one end there were a large mahogany table surrounded by three armchairs and a ridiculously long sofa. At the other end sat Jonas' behind his desk and rummaged through piles of paper. But the most attention drawing thing in the entire room was probably the tapestry covering the entire wall behind his desk, picturing three golden crowns forming a triangle against a dark blue background. Nothing too fancy, yet it was it's outrageous size that drew the attention.

"Hey, Jonas!" Rango hollered as he entered the office, making the gray viper jump in surprise.

"Fajnally!" He scowled and corrected the overly decorated top hat on his head, that had tipped to the side when he jumped. "Aj've ben wajting!"

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that. But Bill had some... complaints, he wanted to take up with me..." Rango said with a shrug.

"Alrajt" Jonas nodded grumpily and slithered away from the desk and up to the small group that just entered his office. "Lets heer it so ve kan get this over vith!" He cocked his head at Priscilla, who first looked at the viper with a puzzled look on her face, before she remembered why they were here.

Hicks had already told Rango about what Priscilla told him about what she had overheard Bob and Wes talking about. Rango thought it would be better if she told the King herself, however, why Bentley was here too was a mystery.

"Well..." She said, trying to recall what they had said. "... I was in the stables, tendin' to my 'runner, when I heard someone enter the stables. I recognized Wes voice and the sound his peg leg does, an' he called the other one Bob. I hid behind my 'runner an' overheard them talkin' 'bout some 'mutiny' an' they mentioned somethin' 'bout 'the Valve', whatever that is, an' I they were goin' to have t'use some key for it..." Once again, she left out the part concerning her and their plan for revenge on Bentley. She didn't want to worry him even more, especially not after that meeting they had with the Gajerras a while ago. Although, he seemed to have forgotten about that, as he was running around the office and poked at everything he saw. Jonas cast a nervous glance at him every now and then, just in case he'd brake something. When Priss finished telling him everything she knew, he turned to her and narrowed his brownish red eyes. He didn't look happy.

"Are jo joking vith me?" He said with a slightly angered tone in his voice.

"No, sir..." Priss shook her head.

"I've told ya b'fore, an' here's yer proof!" Rango said, nodding to Priss. "Face it, one of yer men's a traitor, an' he's gotten most of yer people here on his side!"

Jonas was quiet for a while, just staring down at the rug. He cursed after a while and looked up. "If vhat jor saying is true, then... HÖRRU! BORT MED TASSARNA!" He interrupted himself and lunged for Bentley, who just picked up a peculiar looking wooden horse from one of the shelves. It was red and covered with white, green, blue and yellow decorations. The snake snatched the horse back from the hyena and held it in the air with his tail. "DONT toch it agajn!" He hissed, which only caused Bentley to start laughing. Jonas snorted and placed the wooden horse back on the shelve as gently as he could. "Nov, vhere vere vi?"

"Errm, I hope ya don't mind me askin'..." Priss said. "But, what's the Valve?"

"An' whaddya got in it this time?" Rango added.

Jonas sighed. "Valvet, teh Valve, is teh big room behind teh majn storage. There is only one waj in and ut, and thats thru a big metall dorr, vich only Aj have teh kej for!" He cast a suspicious glance at Bentley. The hyena was standing with his arms crossed next to the bookcase and grinned innocently. But as soon as the viper turned around, the hyenas finger lashed out and poked the little wooden horse. "That vhat Aj hav stored in there..." He turned around again, but Bentley had stopped poking the horse and was now leaning against the wall again, still grinning innocently. Priscilla stifled a giggle.

"What do ya have stored in there?" Rango repeated himself.

"At least ten kanons, onehundrafifti rifles, onehundra shotguns, and teh other DL-devajse..." The viper bobbed his head to the sides as he counted.

Priss frowned. "What's a DL-device?"

"Dynamite-Launcher" Rango answered before Jonas could. "It's one of Bentleys inventions, actually" Their eyes turned to Bentley, who chuckled modestly and scratched the back of his neck.

"Oh naw, no need to thank me!"

"One day when he was being extra obnoxious, we locked him up in a workshop to stop him from gettin' on ev'rybodys nerves. Next day we saw him he had designed an' built a weapon of mass destruction..." Rango grimaced. "Somehow I wasn't that surprised, actually..."

Priss frowned. _A weapon of mass destruction?_ She thought to herself._ But isn't he a pacifist...? Oh never mind... _"The other?" She said, recalling Jonas list. "There's more of them?"

"Two, one's here an' the other one's in Dirt..."

"In DIRT?!"

"Yeah, it was gonna help us defeat the snakes, hopefully killin' one or two of 'em. But as y'know, since we discovered that underground lake, well..." Rango shook his head. "We had to change our plans..."

"That's not all there is in that there Valve, ain't it?" Hicks said and narrowed his eyes.

Jonas shook his head. "Nej..." He answered sadly. "There's more; five gajtlings, at least Fivehundra kilo off dynamit, a bomb and a verry large kontainer vith a highly explosiv liquid teh humans kalls: 'gasolin'..."

"But, if it's a liquid, it's not a gas?" Bentley stopped picking at the merchandise in the shelves and cocked his head at the viper.

"Nej, but that's vhat teh humans kalls it!" Jonas replied with an annoyed roll of his eyes.

"Then why do they call it 'GASoline'? Shouldn't it be called 'LIQUIDoline' instead?"

"Rango, jor hyena is getting on maj nerves!"

Rango stifled a laugh. "Yeah, I can tell!"

Bentley snorted. "I'm just sayin'...!" He said with a shrug. "Feels stupid to call somethin' it ain't..."

"Is there anythin' else we should know 'bout left in the Valve?" Rang said, bringing the conversation back to it's origin. Jonas hurried to shake his head, but a skeptically raised eyebrow from Hicks made him sigh and hang his head.

"And a years suply off semlor..." He admitted.

"Hey!" Bentley exclaimed with a hurt look on his face. "Ya told me they were all out!"

"I Aj said Aj had more, jo vould just stuff jor fat fejs till they vere all ut!" Jonas answered with a growl.

Priscilla frowned. "What's that?"

"I dunno!" Bentley grinned before Jonas could answer. "Some Swedish pastry I guess, but they're awesome!"

"No, they're vile!" Rango and Hicks protested in unison. The lizard crossed his arms. "It's a bun stuffed with cream an' sugar an' then topped with more sugar! It's disgustin'!"

"Ya just say that b'cause you're weak, that's why!" Bentley defiantly folded his arms across his chest and snorted. "Can't handle the sugar!"

Jonas cleared his throat and pouted. "So, are vi done?" He asked and raised an invisible eyebrow.

"Uh yeah, pretty much..." Rango said. "Anyway, do ya believe us now? Some of yer men might be plannin' a mutiny, what're ya gonna do?"

The viper shook his head and sighed. "Aj don't know. Gess Aj have to believe jo..." Jonas turned to the tapestry and slithered over to it. He used the tip of his tail to move one of the folds and unveil a small safe. He spun the little button and the safes door popped open. He dug into the built in safe and withdrew key about the size of a finger. He tossed it to Rango. "This is teh kej for teh Valv. Kuld jo do mi a fajvor and stash it awaj somevhere?"

Rango nodded and passed the key on to Bentley. "Find a good place to hide this, buddy!"

"No problemo, chief!" Bentley replied and did a comical salute.

"V-va? Waj are jo giving it to HIM?!" Jonas exclaimed with poorly hidden surprise.

"B'cause if there's anyone here who'd come up with a hidin' spot so good he wouldn't be able to find it himself, it's Bentley" Hicks answered.

"Thats vhat Aj'm afraid off..." The viper mumbled and straightened up the hat, which once again had slipped to the side.

Rango pretended he didn't hear that. "Anyway, me an' the others has things to do, at least now ya know that there's someone amongst yer men plannin' stuff..."

"But vho?" Jonas flicked his eyes at Priss. "Didnt they saj vho?"

Priss shook her head. "No, not what I can recall, sorry..." Jonas mumbled something in response and looked down at the ground.

Rango and his men/woman gave a short nod to the viper as they walked out from the office, but just as Bentley was about to leave, the viper remembered something and called out for the hyena: "Vait! Hyena, there vas someting Aj vas going to ask jo about...!"

Bentley quickly raised his hands in defense. "Wait! Ya got the wrong guy! I ain't the one who poured salt on the toilet paper! Promise!" He said nervously with an innocent grin.

Jonas shook his head. "Nejnej, thats not vhat Aj vas going to... vait, it VAS jo, wasnt it?!" He said and narrowed his eyes. But before Bentley could come up with an excuse, he waved him off with his tail tip. "Never mind, Aj vas going to ask jo to do a favor... Jo klimb good, ja?"

"Sure! I mean, I'm a decent climber...!"

"Tunder Vinge said he dropped one off his fethurs jesterdaj, its probably stuk on the hatch. Jo think jo can retrive it?"

"One of his what?!"

"Fethurs!"

"Oh! Ya mean feathers!"

"Thats vhat Aj said!"

"Sorry, but jo talk so funny!"

"Stopp that!"

"Vhy?"

Jonas sighed and rolled his eyes. "Anyvaj, are jo going to help os ut? Jo are probably the only one kapabel to klimb up to teh hatch!"

"I dunno..." Bentley scratched his neck. "Thunder Wing an' I aren't exactly pals... I mean, that crazy indian wanna scalp me!" He winced.

"But vhat if he promiss to not skalp jo for a veek?"

"Hmm... Alrighty, it's a deal!"

While Bentley and Jonas where talking, Priss sat on a crate down in the main hall. Thinking.

She was thinking about Dirt, about the weapon that they had left there. Hicks said he destroyed it, but knowing the ingenuity of the Dirtonians, they were probably rebuilding it right now! And what if they decided to try it out and caused a crack in the earth, allowing the water underground to escape? The town would be flooded! Maybe even tumble down in the old aquifers!

And that nightmare she had... It had been very fuzzy and incoherent, but she remembered seeing the Gajerras in Dirt. Bentley, both Rangos and the rest of the gang was there too, and suddenly there were tons of water everywhere!

She stared down at her feet, dangling about ten inches from the ground. _I shouldn't have abandoned the town, should I?_ She thought and bit her lip. _I should've stayed an' warned 'em 'bout the underground lake! Not run away with a bunch of good-for-nothin' criminals... _

Somehow, the thoughts of her betrayal to Dirt had been pushed aside the last days. She furrowed her brows. How come she had been so light headed these past days, one might even say carefree? How come everytime Bentley was around...? _Bentley?!_ Her eyes widened. Of course, it was thanks to him that she's been forgetting about Dirt!

_I-I really AM in love with him, aren't I?_ She sighed and shook her head, hiding her face in her hands. _Gotta stop hangin' 'round with him! I can't go fall head over heels for someone like him! W-what if the Dirtonians finds out? Sheriff Rango, Beans... Wounded Bird... Me and an outlaw?! What am I doing?! I-I've gotta stop falling for him! That's it, from now on I'll...!_

"Hey! Prissy!" His cheerful voice woke her up from her thoughts. She snapped her head to the side and saw him come strutting towards her, a white, black tipped feather about the size of his arm in his hand.

She immediately questioned her plans to avoid him and try to stop herself from falling for him even more. Bentley had that silly grin on his face, as usual as he came to a stop in front of the crate. She got reminded of all the things he had done for her, his many efforts to cheer her up when she was down. She had to admit it: he WAS kinda sweet...

She jumped down from the crate and nodded to the feather. "Where did'ya get that thing?"

He pointed at Thunder Wings hatch in the roof. "Big ol' birdbrain dropped it" He grimaced. "Now I'll just have to return it to him... WITHOUT losin' my scalp!"

"Good luck with that!" Priscilla nodded and took a small step back. "I-I've gotta go an', errm, check on Birdie! I-I ain't even given him any breakfast yet!" She said and took a few steps back again.

Bentley frowned and tipped his head to the side. "What's wrong?"

"Huh?"

"You're actin'... strange?"

"N-no, I ain't!" She frowned and stopped. "I-I've got things to do, that's all!"

"Ya always stutter when ya fibs, y'know that right?" He said and his ears drooped. "I noticed that when ya told me 'bout those wounds..."

Priss sighed. "Yeah, I know I know! I'm sorry I lied 'bout that!" She said and tried not to feel guilty. "But seein' how concerned ya were before ya left, I didn't wanna worry ya further..." One of his dropping ears flicked. "An' if ya excuse me, I'll have to go to Birdie now. Want me to check on Grumpy too while I'm in the stables?"

"Sure, just watch yer fingers. He's a big fan of pecking at peoples hands when he's hungry... Prissy, umm..." First he stared down at the ground, but then he lifted his face slightly and looked at her from under his unmanageable bangs. "Can ya tell me the truth now? How did ya get them bruises?"

Priscilla sighed once again and averted her eyes. "Fine. Pancho didn't like my lil' fire-breathin' stunt on him, an' threatened to cut my eyes out... That's how I got 'em bruises 'round my neck, I s'pose, when he tried to strangle me... " She said and folded her arms. Her eyes darted back to Bentley, only to see that his ears had flattened against his neck, as they used to when he was angry. "But it's alright, I guess I've only got myself to blame!" She shrugged. "I mean, I provoked them...!"

"But they hurt ya!"

"B-Bentley? Don't get mad now!" She had noticed an angry growl in his voice and carefully put her hands up. "B'cause that's just what they want!"

He snorted and turned his head away. "What happened to yer face, then? Why did they do that? B'cause ya slammed Frankie in the face?"

"No, it wasn't the Gajerras who did that..."

"Then who?"

"I..." She carefully touched the scratches on her cheek with her fingertips. "I-I'd rather not say..."

"Why?"

_Because I still feel like a moron..._ "I-I gotta go now. I'll see ya later!" She hurried to say and quickly escaped the scene, leaving Bentley behind.

He watched as she disappeared into the stables and let his arms fall to the side. He slouched his shoulders and hung his head slightly. "Why're ya shuttin' me out now, Prissy?" He mumbled sadly and slowly shook his head.

**Meanwhile in Dirt...**

Beans watched with a smile as little Mattie followed Jolene to the lake, constantly talking about her family. Jolene was nodding and replying with surprised gasps or 'No! Really?' to what the little kangaroo rat said, constantly with an amused smirk on her lips.

Beans chuckled. All her life she had heard that snakes, especially rattlesnakes, were the spawn of evil, outlaws who wouldn't hesitate to kill. In fact, it was often said that rattlesnakes killed for fun! But seeing how Jolene was concerned about her brother, and the great way she had with children, made her question all those stories of the serpentine killers of the West. Sure, Jake and Blake would actually fit in there, but Jolene was different from her brother. VERY different. Maybe all snakes weren't bad?

Beans' thoughts were interrupted when she spotted something half buried underneath the sand. She frowned and walked up to the purple piece of fabric protruding from the ground. She pulled it up and immediately identified it as Priscillas scarf. The desert lizard frowned and looked around. Had she been here?!

A sudden idea struck the desert lizard and she stuffed the scarf into her pocket and went to see Rango. Maybe they could use it to track down the outlaws and find their hideout?

**Sorry once again it's late, but I just can't get over how poor our internet connection is -.-... This is getting ridiculous, we thought it would be better when we got a new router after our old one were killed last year, but nooo! It's still bugging us and sometimes it stops working -.-...**

**Gotta be something wrong with the area we live in or something o_o...? Or is it us...?**

…

**Anyway, hopefully the next chapter won't be delayed like this xD! See y'all then :P!**


	43. Stupid Wench

**Alrighty, back again with a new chapter :D! **

**Haven't got that much to say this time...  
**

**Enjoy~!**

***** Chapter Fortythree : Stupid Wench... *****

Bentley was walking down the gloomy hallway to Thunder Wings room, restlessly spinning the giant feather around between his fingers. He was thinking, or at least he was trying to;

_Why won't Prissy tell me like it is? Doesn't she trust me or somethin'? Fortythree bottles of beer on the wall, fortythree bottles of beeeer...~! Wait, where was I? Oh yeah, Prissy! Can't she see that I'm worried 'bout her?! I really don't wanna lose her too! I've never liked the Gajerras, they're so... unnecessarily cruel and brutal! Why can't they just leave her alone? I don't care what they do to me, as long as they leave her alone! Why does Thunder Wing want this feather back?! It's not like he's short on feathers, I bet he's got feathers growing INSIDE his head or somethin'! He's like the godamn feather-master! Huh? Oh yeah, Prissy... Have I done somethin' wrong? Yesterday she seemed to like me, but back there it was like she was tryin' to avoid me? Why is she tryin' to avoid me?! It IS me that's done somethin', isn't it? Eww, I need a new shirt! This bloodstain makes it look like I've killed someone or somethin'! Disgustin'! Oh man, I should go back an' apologize! I dunno what it is I've done, but it must've been bad. Wonder if she'd like THAT place? I think she likes the tunnel, but wonder if she'd like the aqui... Hey! It's Gringo! It's been awhile! Hmm, wonder if his ears still hurts... Oops! Yup! They certainly do! Wow! He's runnin' fast today! Has he been workin' out?!But he's still not a faster runner than me, huh? Aw, too bad. Wonder how fast Prissy runs? I guess she's a pretty fast runner, I mean, she's got kinda long legs!... Long, gorgeous legs... Best legs I've ever seen! An' dat fluffy tail... Wait, what? Alright, focus! Gotta return this feather to the crazy indian, then go back to Prissy an' tell her I'm sorry! AND that I love her! How come somethin' ALWAYS distracts me when I'm 'bout to tell her that?! That's it! From now on, I'll NEVER let anythin' distract me ever ag... Oh! Shiny! Ow! Godamn it all, my nose STILL hurts! Seriously, WHAT are the odds?! I'm hidin' above a ledge, high up on the canyons walls. Practically invisible to every mortal on the planet. He throws a rock at random and it hits me square on the nose. WHY are these things happenin' to me?! Karma? I bet it's karma... Man, maybe I should stop tying peoples shoelaces together? Or switching the tags on the toothpastes and lotions? Or both?  
_

Slowly getting lost in his own thoughts, Bentley finally made it to Thunder Wings room. He forgot for a moment why he was there, but the feather in his hand reminded him. He stepped in through the enlargened, doorless entrance. He raised his palm. "Ugg!" He said with a grin.

The large bald eagle was lying in a round nest, built with twigs knitted together in a complicated pattern in the middle of the room, narrowing his eyes at the hyena that entered his quarters. "What do you want, Laughing One?" The eagle said suspiciously and raised an eyebrow.

"I'm just here to return this to ya!" He said and held up the white feather, whose tips had been dipped in black and decorative red yarn was sprouting from the tip. "Ya told Jonas ya dropped this!" The large eagle stood up and took a giant skip out from his nest and landed in front of Bentley, the large talons scraping the ground. Bentley gulped. "Please don't scalp me! Prissy probably likes me better with my hair intact! If she likes me at all that is..."

The raptor ignored him and snatched the feather back and something that would resemble a smirk appeared at the corners of his sharp, hooked beak. "Thunder Wing thanks the Laughing One, never thought Thunder Wing would ever say that..." He said and stuck the feather back in the headgear on his head before skipping back to his nest. With Bentley shortly behind.

"Umm, if ya don't mind me askin', but what's so important 'bout that feather?" The hyena said and jumped up, grabbing the edges of the nest. "It's not like you're short on feathers... By the way, why do they call you a BALD eagle? No offense, but you're definitely the least baldest eagle I've ever met! Then again, you're the only eagle I've ever met... Did ya know there are birds less lucky than ya? That doesn't have feathers coverin' their entire body? Turkeys, for instance! They had this turkey in Dirt, Gordon I think his name was, an' he was like, balder than the baldest! No kiddin'; he looked like he got his head stuck in a meatgrinder! Why don'tcha donate some of yer feathers to the ones in need? Like Gordon, an' that one-legged carrion bird! Slim or whats-his-face, he had barely any feathers at all...!" The raptor gave him an angry look, a silent 'shut the fuck up!'. Bentley covered behind the edge of the nest, barely hiding his nose behind the twigs.

"These feathers belonged to Thunder Wings mate, Little River. Little River were killed by soldiers in the war. Thunder Wing wears Little Rivers feathers to honor her!" The eagle answered with a solemn voice.

"Ya mean, THAT war? The Civil War? That war that freed the likes of us? The reason I can walk around freely without riskin' gettin' caught by the Catchers an' taken back to the..."

"YES! That war!" The eagle rolled his eyes. "For heavens sake... You leave Thunder Wing alone now, Laughing One? Thunder Wing grateful to Laughing One, for bringing Little Rivers feather, but Laughing Ones presence makes Thunder Wing want to throw up. And birds cannot throw up!"

"Heaven? Ya believe in that bullshimmick?"

"Go away, Laughing One!"

"So, what ya were sayin' b'fore is that ya actually wear yer ol' girlfriend on yer head? That's kinda creepy if ya ask me..." Bentley ignored the birds irritated hiss and kept talking. "I mean, that would be just like if I started walkin' 'round with Prissys body parts on my head!"

"LEAVE!" The eagle had enough and stood up from his nest, spreading his wings out from his body and screeched at Bentley. Bentley chortled out a laugh and jumped down from the nest and scurried out to the hallway again. The bird mumbled something and nestled down in his fortress of twigs again. "One day, Laughing One will learn not to make fun of others... One day..."

While Bentley was walking back to the main hall and the stables, he was once again thinking. This time of another place he once found while strolling the area. _Wonder if Prissy wanna see that place? It's a really cool place! Maybe she'll forgive me for whatever-it-was I did, if I show her..!"_

"YO! B!" A loud voice hollered next to him, violently jerking him back to reality. He jumped to the side and yelped, frightened by the sudden voice, and saw Caleb almost doubling over with laughter. "Oh my fuckin' god, B! Really?! REALLY?!" The aye-aye giggled while Bentley snorted bemusedly and pouted. "That's NEVER worked before! I didn't think you'd... Oh holy shit! I'll NEVER forget 'bout this!" The young aye-aye laughed even harder at the hyenas grimace and had to lean against the wall to not fall to the ground.

Bentleys expression loosened up and he chuckled. "You're right!That WAS kinda funny..."

"So, what the fuck have you done to yer nose?" Caleb chortled and dried the tears of laughter from his large, round eyes. "Looks like you've been in a fight or somethin'!"

"My nose?" Bentley repeated confusedly and gently touched his nose, sending a small, but sudden, jolt of pain through his face. "Ouch! I dunno..." He quickly withdrew his hand and shrugged.

The aye-aye gradually stopped laughing. "M'kay, anyway, have you seen everyones favorite witch 'round here?" He said with a smirk.

Bentley tilted his head and frowned. "Who?"

"Who'dya think, dofus?" Caled rolled his eyes. "'Bout this tall, wavy, black hair, kinda looks like me, but uglier... I THINK you might be familiar with her, no?"

Bentley crossed his arms. "Nobody can be uglier than ya, Caleb!"

"Oh you'd be surprised! Anyway, seen her 'round here?"

"Why?"

"Hey! What's up with that freakin' look? I just wanna talk to the bitch, that's all!"

"STOP callin' her bitch!"

"Why?"

"B'cause that's mean! She's never done anythin' to ya! Nothin' that ya didn't deserve, that is!"

"Mean? Moi?" Caleb raised an eyebrow. "You're damn right I am! Now, where's that good-fer-nothin' whore...?" He had barely finished the sentence before Bentleys fist came crashing into the aye-ayes face, sending the tall, lanky teen flying backwards onto the ground. Bentleys eyes widened as he realized what he just did.

"Shit! I-I'm sorry, Caleb!" Bentley exclaimed and staggered back. "I-I didn't mean to hit ya! Not that hard, at least!" He held up his palms in defense.

Caleb clutched his aching nose and stared in shock at him. "Wow!" He said after a while. "I did NOT expect that!" He got up to his feet and wiped off a trail of blood that snaked its way down from his nostril. "As a matter of fact, I'm surprised ya didn't sock me sooner, considerin' what Mongo did..."

"Gee, I'm REALLY sorry Caleb and... Eh? Wait, Mongo? The monster? What's Mongo done?"

"Huh?" Caleb frowned and tilted his head. "She didn't tell ya?"

One of Bentleys eyes twitched. "She tell me? Tell me 'bout what?!" He said flustered. "What's goin' on here?!"

"Oh..." Calebs already large eyes widened even more. "So, she hasn't... Uh, yeah... Well, I gotta go. Still gotta talk to Pri... Errm, I mean the sluttynator. Don't bother tellin' me, I'll find her myself!" The teen slowly backed away before turning around and speedwalked out into the gloomy corridor.

Bentley also turned around and ran towards the great hall, to look for Priss in the stables. He zigzagged between the men working in the corridors and leaped over a stack of boxes that some moron had left in the middle of the way. First he was going to ask her to tell him the truth, then he was going to beat the hell outta Caleb and that freak Mongo and... _What?!_ Bentley slowed down and put his hand up to his forehead. _What am I thinkin'?! No! Violence ain't the answer! It never is! No matter what Rango says! Am I comin' down sick or somethin'?_

…

Caleb kicked the pebble out of his way as he followed the gloomy corridor, pacing close to the wall with his hands in his pockets.

_Stupid wench!_ He thought and pouted. He noticed that the pebble was still in his path so he kicked it again, this time to the side. _WHY didn't she tell him?! I thought for sure she'd run to that dawdlin' idiot as soon as he returned, whine and cry 'bout when she got attacked by every mean guy in the Nest, but nooo! She could've gotten back at me for all the things I keep callin' her, but why isn't she...? ARGH! Stupid wench!_ He gritted his teeth and kept his eyes locked on the hallway ahead of him, even though he barely registered what he saw. _Anyway, the sooner I find her, the sooner I can ask her why the hell she wont stop lookin' for trouble! Those Gajerras'll get her one day, and I can just IMAGINE what B would do when he finds out..._ The aye-aye shivered involuntarily. He had been there when Bentley lost it big time three years ago. Not a pretty sight... _And I won't be able to pester that guy further if they somehow cause him to go all bananas again! And I ain't the one cleanin' up this time! _Calebs large, brightly yellow eyes turned to the roof. _And maybe I might be able to get her to tell me more 'bout Dirt... Especially 'bout the water! There's GOTTA be another reason why Jet wants that water! He's a greedy sonnova bitch, we all know that, but the lengths he's willing to go for this crappy little towns water supply is kinda suspicious, to say the least! _

…

Jake was lying all curled up into a bun by the lake, staring out over its shimmering surface with his blood red eyes.

"Hey, ya still sleepin'?" He heard Jolenes voice call out and he turned his eyes to his little sister, who came slithering forward with that little rodent girl tagging along. He shifted his eyes back to the lake and mumbled something inaudible in response. "Huh?" Jolene cocked her head to the side as she arrived at Jakes side.

"Nothin'..." He mumbled a bit louder and kept glaring at the water, reflecting the morning sun.

"Blake's doin' much better, by the way..." She said and first looked at Mattie, and then at the ground. Jake did a grunting nod and kept his gaze locked ahead of him. "There's one more thing I gotta tell ya, Jake... It's 'bout those herbs..." Jake did another uninterested, grunting nods. Jolene rolled her eyes at her brother. "Coral came with 'em..." This got Jakes attention.

He lifted his head from the ground and turned to Jolene. "What?" He squinted his eyes.

"I said: Coral came with 'em!" Jolene repeated slowly. Right after she got the satchel of herbs from Coral and after she woke half of the town up, both Doc and Wounded Bird had asked about the herbs origin and she had given them both the same answer: 'Shut up an' do somethin' instead!"

Jake frowned and was grinding his jaw as he thought. "Coral?" He repeated in disbelief. "Why in hell would she do that?"

Jolene shrugged. "Beats me..."

"Maybe..." Mattie said carefully. "Maybe she's still in love with him?"

Jake laughed dryly. "Fat chance! My brother's an asshole, has always been an' always will be! An' it's HIS fault we're all in this mess! Ya wanna know what he did?" He slithered closer to Mattie and let his split tongue dart out of his mouth. Mattie backed closer to Jolene and nodded.

"Maybe I should tell? No offense, Jacob, but you're not exactly suitable for children..." Jolene cocked her head to the other side and snickered. Jake replied by recoiling slightly and mumbled something incoherent again.

"What did he do, Miss Jolene?" Mattie asked curiously and looked up at the female rattlesnake with large, dark eyes.

"Well, it was last year. Jacob, Blake an' I were in a town known as Little Springs. There, we met Durango for the first time in many, many years. We were all happy for the reunion, or at least me an' Jacob were. Blake had been his normal self and gotten a girl to fall madly in love with him; a coralsnake called Coral. Back then, we didn't know that Coral worked for Durango. As a matter of fact, Durango's entire gang was spread around the town, disguised as citizens. A few days later, his gang members cornered me an' Jacob, an' Durango revealed that he was hired by a friend of his to bring Jacob down. That's why I shot him." Jolene frowned and her tailtip swished angrily. "Anyway, with their leader wounded, the gang retreated. Ev'ryone except Coral. She was too madly in love with Blake, so she decided to stay with him. An' for a moment there, I could swear that Blake finally found someone special to 'im..." The two rattlesnakes shook their heads in unison. "I've never been so wrong in my entire life... Only a few days after Durango an' his men retreated, he cheated on Coral. He cheated BIG time! I wasn't there, so I ain't sure exactly what happened, but from what I've heard she found 'im with THREE other women. Cheap saloon ladies at top of it all! An' instead of apologizin', he had the balls to ask her if she'd wanna join 'em instead! She threw a vase in his head, an' that was the last time anyone of us ever heard from 'er... Apparently, she went back to Durangos gang, an' I guess it's partly thanks to Blake the town's in this mess. But I ain't entirely innocent either, I DID shoot 'im!"

Jake started muttering quietly to himself. "A bloody Ming-vase... An' guess who got to pay that ol' chinese fer it? Me! B'cause my brother the slob gambled away all his money!" Jake grumbled bitterly and recoiled back into a bun with his head on the ground. "An' that ol' coot was too loyal to his wife to accept any other form of payment, wasn't that right, Jo?" He snickered grimly. Jolene rolled her eyes at her brother.

"That's actually a rare trait 'mongst ya men, an' I admire him for declinin'!" She said and stuck her nose proudly up in the air.

"Declinin' what?" Mattie asked curiously, causing the snake beside her to tense up and blush.

"Umm, Mr Ping declined... uhh, a game of checkers! His wife hates it when he plays checkers!" Jolene answered with a nervous chuckle.

"'Specially with other women!" Jake chuckled with a wide grin on his face. His sisters awkwardness amused him greatly! Jolene gave him an angry look and her rattle twitched with a dry, rustling sound.

"J-JAAKE! JOOLEENE!" The sheriffs sudden voice made all three of them to turn their heads to the town as the chameleon came running towards them, something purple waving in his hand.

He came to a halt between the two rattlers and leaned on his knees, panting heavily after running all the way. He definitely needed to start working out...

"Where's the fire, sheriff?" Jolene asked and leveled her head with the panting chameleon.

Rango held up the purple scarf in his hand. "H-how good is a snakes sense of smell?!"

Jakes nose scrunched up in a frown as he jerked his head back. "What?"

"This scarf belongs to Priscilla, I saw that hyena fellow wearin' it yesterday, he must've dropped it! So I thought that maybe we could use it to track 'em...!"

"Wait, wait, wait!" Jake said, interrupting the sheriff with a wave of his gatling-rattle. "Are ya askin' us to TRACK 'em with our sense of smell?!" He growled angrily and towered over the much smaller reptile. "Do we look like sleuthing hounds to ya? Go find someone else to make a fool outta themselves!"

"Hey, no need to get angry, I was just asking!" Rango mumbled and held up his hands in front of him.

"Well, it's worth a shot, ain't it?" Jolene perked up, the two men turned their heads to her in surprise. She giggled at Jakes expression of shock and a slight bit of fear. "Sure, a snake might not be r'commended choice, as there are animals with a much better sense of smell than us. But if we're the best option 'round, then fine! I'll do anythin' to find that lil' rat!"

"Ya gotta be kiddin' me!" Jake exclaimed. "We ain't even got noses! HOW are we s'posed to track a scent without noses?!" He growled. She didn't say anything in response, she just let her dark tongue dart out of her mouth. He mumbled something and pulled his hat down over his eyes with his tail. "Ya gotta be kiddin' me..." He repeated with a grumpy mutter.

Suddenly a bloodcurling scream echoed through the town, turning everyones attention at the doctors office. The two rattlesnakes on the beach jerked in surprise.

"Blake!" They both exclaimed in unison and dashed towards the town. Leaving Rango and Mattie coughing in a trail of dust that their long bodies whipped up.

Jake got there first, he poked his head in through the door. "Blake...?" He said, and grunted in annoyance when his sister squeezed past him through the enlargened doorway.

"Move it, fatso!" She hissed and squirmed through the tight space that was left between her brother and the wall. "Blake?!" She shouted as she entered the surgery and looked around, discovered her brother completely covered under the bloodstained sheets serving as his bed.

"'Jeave me ajone!" She heard his muffled voice from under the bed and she tried to supress a giggle. He talked really funny!

"Blake?" She slithered up to the suspicious ball underneath the sheets and lifted her fold with her snout. Uncovering his face.

He had gotten the bandage around his snout off and as soon as he discovered the crater where his missing fang once sat, he screamed. He was sobbing and pitying himself for losing one of his beloved fangs.

Having his siblings gawking at him was NOT what he needed right now!

"'E-'ey! I schaid 'jeave me ajone!" He sobbed. She could tell that he wasn't used to the hole in his gums. He sounded hilarious! She started giggling. "N-no! Schtop jaffin' at me!" He hissed and blushed angrily.

"I-I'm sorry, Blake!" She chortled and covered her mouth with her rattle. "I-I'm trying' not to!"

"I'm schwounded an' all scha do is 'jaffin' ach me!" He said hurtfully and looked away. "I HACHE SCHA BOCH!"

His last outburst made Jolene burst out into a roaring laughter and writhe on the floor, almost swiping things down from the shelves and tables with her tail. He growled and pulled the fold of the sheet down over his face again, shielding himself from his cruel surroundings.

"What's goin' on in there?!" She could hear Jakes voice from the hall.

"H-he's awake now!" She said and wiped the tears of laughter away from her eyes. "An' he's alright! He's goin' to be fine!"

"NO I AINCH!" He protested from underneath the bed with his muffled voice. "I'm hurch! I'm very much hurch!"

Jolene threw herself back on the floor, violently laughing again. Blake winced and the ball of sheets seemed to grow smaller as the snake curled up in embarrassment and frustration.

**Wow, these past weeks have been slow as hell o_o... **

**And I know I've been saying this for a while, but I'm SOON finished with the last ROTH chapter! Very soon! I PROMISE to upload it before the week is over!**

**But it's so godarn long I've been forced to cut it in two parts _... **

**Anyway, see ya next chapter :D!**

**Shouldn't take too long :P**


	44. The new place

**Alright, chapter 44 eh? Sorry for the slight delay, had a lot to do -.-...**

**Let's see what's going on in Dirt first, as a change, eh ;D?**

**Oh, and if anyone's interested, Rangos story, Rise of the Hunter, is finished, so give it a read if you haven't already ;)!**

***** Chapter Fortyfour : The New Place *****

Doc examined the very non-submissive Blake as soon as the snake woke up, and told him not to leave the office for a week, as his wounds were still open and needed time to heal. Which suited Blake perfectly fine, as he intended to NEVER show his face in public again! Not with only one fang, that is!

His siblings rolled their eyes at their silly brother. "C'mon now, Blake!" Jolene said and playfully tapped her brother on top of his head with her rattle. "Don't pout, be lucky you're still alive! Ya almost died, y'know!" She wrapped her tail around his head and brought him closer in a hug. "Ya have NO idea how worried I was!"

He winced and writhed out of his sisters grip. "Scha told me schat jike, fifcheen chimes alsheady! I GOW schou've been wossied, shish! It doeshn't cake a GENIUSCH co figushe ouch!"

The two rattlesnakes rolled their eyes at their brother again before they decided to leave him alone for the rest of the day. Leaving him to wallow in his self-pitying.

The Dirtonians project on rebuilding that catapult-crossbow-slingshot-thingy had come to a standstill. There were some parts that just didn't seem to make any sense! Some part fitted where they really shouldn't fit and where they should fit, they didn't!

"Who designed this hunk-a-junk?!" Woodrow growled and threw away a wrench in anger.

"Kinda looks Asian, don'tcha think?" Gus replied without moving his attention away from the boards he was nailing back together. Normally, they would probably serve as support to the frame, but here they seemed to be a part of the launching mechanism.

"Asian..." Woodrow snorted. "I'm tellin' ya, Gus, this atrocity looks like a load of things, but Asian ain't one of 'em!" The old prairie dog crossed his arms. "Only a madman could come up with somethin' like this!"

None of them noticed the two riders who turned their roadrunners around and left, shortly followed by something moving around underneath the sand.

…

Bentley bolted into the stable. "Yo, Prissy! I...!" He came to a complete halt and looked around. No Priscilla. Only the roadrunners standing in their stalls, either eating or sleeping.

"Sorry, pal! You just missed her!" Jet said and chucked up a saddle on the back of his pale gray roadrunner. Bentley didn't even notice that the raccoon was there until he spoke. "She was here a minute ago, tending to her roadrunner, and then she left. She looked like she was in a hurry!" Jet showed his hand down the pockets of his capote coat and leaned against the walls of the stall. "She's missing?"

"Well, now she is..." He said nervously and scratched the back of his neck. "Wait! Where's the Gajerras?!"

"Don't worry, they're upstairs in the gambling room..." He chuckled in amusement at Bentleys relieved sigh. "She giving you gray hairs, huh?"

Bentley shook his head. "Nah... Not really!" Jet raised an eyebrow. Bentley winced. "Okay then, maybe a few... But I'm sure she doesn't mean to! I don't think so... Besides, it ain't her fault! It's them darn Komorons!" He growled.

Jet cocked his head with an amused grin. "Can I ask you something, Bentley? Something kinda personal?"

One of Bentleys ears flicked. "Eh? Like what?" He asked, a bit suspiciously.

"How much does she mean to you?" Jet said. "From what I've been able to tell, it's gotta be a great deal, huh?"

Bentley flinched and blushed faintly. He snorted and crossed his arms, ears flattened to his neck. "T-that ain't none of yer business, rainbow-coat!"

Jet held up his hands in defense. "Woah, sorry then, buddy! Can't help it, being curious is just part of my nature!" He chuckled and leaned back on the wall again.

Bentley narrowed his eyes at the raccoon, before grinning widely and burst out in a mad laughter. Jet frowned. "What's so funny?" He growled quietly.

Bentley stopped laughing and pointed at the wall Jet was leaning against. "There's a sign that says 'wet paint' there!" Jet cursed loudly and jumped away from the wall and inspected the arm of his coat. Nothing. Bentley began to laugh even harder. "Got'cha!"

Jet looked with a bemused grimace at the laughing hyena. "Of course..." He mumbled and rolled his eyes before turning back to the roadrunner, adjusting the girdle.

"Soo, whe're ya goin'?" Bentley said after he stopped laughing and nodded at the roadrunner.

"That's none of YOUR business!" The raccoon answered and glanced at the hyena from the corner of his eye. "By the way, weren't you looking for someone?" He raised an eyebrow and one of the corners of his mouth was tugged up in a lopsided smile. "Wonder if the Gajerras might've gone tired of gambling by now?"

Bentleys wide grin disappeared as he quickly turned around and without saying anything more, he walked back the same way he came from

Jet sighed in relief. _  
_

…

Priscilla returned to the Com. room and slumped down next to Coral around one of the tables. Coral lied with her body all rolled up underneath the table while resting her big head on top and didn't as much as move her eye as Priss sat down on the bench.

Priss leaned her elbows on the table and put her face in her palms. She felt like a double traitor. Sure, it was wrong that she had grown so attached to Bentley in just a few days, but it felt even more wrong to avoid him like that. And now she could never return to Dirt, and yet she felt that she had to get out of here... Being cooped up in an underground smuggling nest with fifty shady men was really picking at her lawman-instincts, and seeing most of these guys without shackles around their wrists made her fingers itch even more.

And even if it sometimes felt hard to believe, Bentley WAS an outlaw. It was her job to apprehend and lock up men like him, but he was just so... different! He was really cute, and nice, for an outlaw. And funny. And a real sweetheart, when he wanna be. And underneath that goofy personality, he seemed pretty smart, some may even call him intelligent? And lets just say that his physique isn't all too shabby either; definitely that kind of guy other women would KILL to have sleeping next to them and hold them at nights!

She moaned and shook her head. _No! Stop that! He ain't THAT great! He's impulsive, clingy, annoyin', loudmouthed, wimpy, overly attached, one helluva kisser..._ "AUGH!" She gave up with an angry groan and let her head fall to the table with her hands nestled in her hair.

She lifted her head again after a while and noticed Coral looking at her with a tilted head and confused look on her face.

"Oh, hi Coral..." Priscilla said and chuckled nervously while straightened out her bangs that got ruffled out of shape by her hands.

Coral tilted her head to the other side, blinking confusedly. "Huh? Oh, no... It's nothin'... I-I'm just a bit tired, that's all! Bentley woke me up real' early, y'know." Priss said with a nervous chuckle.

Coral grinned slyly and raised an invisible eyebrow. She knew there were something troubling Priss, and she BET it had something to do with Bentley! She nudged her head at Priss, telling her to go on.

"Errm... That's 'bout it..." Priss said, a little bit dumbfounded by Corals sudden interest. Priss and Coral never really talked, mostly because Coral couldn't talk at all. They more or less just acknowledged each others existence, but that was about it. "That is..."

Coral perked up, she grinned and nudged her head again. _Yes?_

"That is, if ya can keep a secret...?"

Coral cocked her head at the aye-aye and raised both of her eyebrows. _Whaddya think?_

Priss chuckled nervously. "Oh, sorry, Coral!"

Coral rolled her eyes and waved with her tailtip, another gesture for Priss to keep talking.

"Well... I..." She hesitated for a while. "I... I was just wonderin', I mean, y'all have know Bentley for a while, right?" Coral nodded. "Do ya know if he's... ever had another girl?" The question surprised Coral just as much as it surprised Prissy herself.

Coral thought for a moment, but then she shrugged. _I dunno...!_ She once again raised an invisible eyebrow at Priss and smiled a smug grin. _Jealous?_

"N-no!" Priss frowned. "I ain't jealous! I'm just..." She interrupted herself, not sure what to say. "Coral..." She said quietly after a while. "I think..." Coral perked up, tense with curiosity. "I-I think I really love that guy..." Why on Earth she'd tell that to Coral was beyond her own understanding. But somehow, she thought that maybe it was better to talk to someone about it? Besides, a girl would probably understand another girls problem, and well, Coral was the only other girl around... "And that's the problem..."

Coral was listening with utmost interest to what Priscilla was telling her. Though she herself really failed to see what it was Priss saw in that goofball... But then again, she had known Bentley for three years, three really weird years! And during those three weird years, she had definitely had her share of his annoying, outrageous personality.

Priscilla sighed and leaned her elbows on the table. "I-I CAN'T fall in love with him! I dunno why, but I just can't! Him an' I... We're too different! In every way! I-it just wouldn't work, would it?"

Coral shrugged. _Dependin' on what ya mean with 'it', really can't see why ya two WOULDN'T work together? So far ya seem to git along might' fine, an' I can tell that ya both changed a lot too! He's finally found someone who actually laughs at his bad jokes, an' ya don't seem to be as much of an stuck up bitch anymore, no offense. This is just my opinion, but I think ya two are perfect for each other, an' I fail to see why it wouldn't work? Unless ya want kids, then I guess you ARE too different an' you're at a loss... Ugh! If she only could read my mind! This is so annoyin', I really wish I could talk!_

"What 'bout ya, Coral?" Priss said and glanced up at Coral with a snicker. "Ya got someone special?"

An image of Blake and that godamn cocky smile of his flashed before her eyes. She sighed, shamefully lowered her head and nodded.

However, the girls talk was interrupted by Bentley, who strolled into the Com. room and immediately spotted Priss. He hollered her name and waved enthusiastically at her.

Her face turned red instantly and she tensed up, afraid that he might've heard their conversation. However, if he had heard anything from it, he surely didn't show it, as he walked up to the table, with his trademark; the goofy grin, plastered on his face.

"H-hi, Bentley!" She said nervously. "A-already back, huh?"

"Eeyup! I've been lookin' for ya, Prissy! Oh! Hey, Coral!" He said cheerfully and leaned forward on the table, nodding at the tricolored snake.

"Oh, yeah... I-I'm sorry 'bout that, Bentley...I...!" She started to stutter forth, but were soon interrupted by him:

"Pack yer things!"

She blinked at him in confusion. "Huh? What?"

"I said pack yer things!" He repeated excitedly and grinned wide. "There's this place I just GOTTA show ya, an' it's pretty far away so we'll have to ride over there!"

Coral chuckled her silent, hoarse, and shaking chuckle and rolled her eyes at Priscillas confused face.

…

They followed the canyon for an hour or so. Priss knew the Crystal Canyon was pretty big, but not THIS big!

When they stopped by a cavern, where a small river streaming from the opposite direction turned into the mountain, Bentley tied the roadrunners next to each other by a small, sprouting tree at the entrance and picked up a torch from their pack. Priss had just taken the blue blanket and stuffed it with a water canteen, a few fruits and the torch, and a can of beans and some bread, in case they would be gone all day.

He lit the torch and waved for her to follow him into the cave. She raised an eyebrow and curiously went after him into the dark cavern.

The cavern continued along with the small river, and Priss just couldn't stop staring at the water passing them by. Had there always been water here? Even ten years ago, during the drought? Boy, wouldn't it be ironic while the entire city was dying with thirst, there had been water just a few miles away?

The dark path continued down, left and right and sometimes she could swear it felt like they were walking up-side down! And all the time, Bentley was quiet. Almost a bit too quiet. And you never know what'll happen when Bentley is quiet...

They were following the stream down, after a while she began to feel tired, and was about to ask him where they were going when he suddenly stopped and grinned slyly at her. "We're here!" He said and stepped out of the way, revealing that they had just entered a great aquifer.

A thin path continued over the waters dark, glistening surface and out into the darkness. The roof seemed to disappear somewhere over their heads and while stalactites hung from the roof, dark stalagmites protruded from the waters surface. They looked like teeth.

"Errm, wow..." Priscilla said, she couldn't help but to feel a little bit disappointed. It wasn't like this was her first time seeing an aquifer, considering you would end up in one if you just followed one of the paths underneath Dirt. She had sneaked down under the town countless of times, just to see the aquifer. That is, until she got bored of it. And to this day, she had definitely seen one aquifer too many...

"Oh, ya ain't seen nothin' yet!" Bentley chuckled with a smug grin and snuffed out the torch.

She frowned and was about to ask him what the hell he was doing when she saw the glowing lights on the walls. She looked around with her mouth wide opened in awe, completely taken away by what she saw: on the walls, there were patches with some sort of fluorescent moss growing. The moss gave off an eery, pale green light and was reflected in the waters surface as tiny, green glowing balls. She could also see the roof now, and realized just how big the aquifer was.

"B-Bentley...?" She shook her head and gasped, laughing and clapping her hands. "W-what is all this?!" She turned around to him, unaware of the wide, happy grin splayed across her face.

"It's an aquifer, duh!"

"I know, but... But what IS that, is it moss?"

"I have no idea!" He shrugged. "I asked Rango 'bout it, an' he says there's another, smaller canyon right next to a ghost town near Dry Creek where this kind of moss grows." He grinned and gestured to the roof. "I call it 'Gloss'; Glowin' Moss!" His voice bounced around the great cavern, echoing back to them and made Priss laugh even more.

"That's the corniest name I've ever heard!" She said, and laughed again at his grumpy pout and crossed arms.

"Well, ya come up with a better name then!" He muttered with a snort.

She snickered and walked down to the water and stuck a hand into the water. It was chilly, and dark so she couldn't see the bottom, but she guessed it was deep. And she could see how tempted Bentley was to push her into the water when she stood up again and turned around.

"Bentley...?" She said, he immediately held his hands up in front of him.

"H-hey! I ain't gonna push ya into the water! I swear!" He said in a hurry, his eyes flicking to the sides.

"Can ya throw me the blanket?" She ignored him and held out her hand. He nodded and threw the rolled up blanket to her.

When she unraveled it and stacked the inventory to the side, he frowned suspiciously. "What're ya gonna do?" He asked as she neatly folded the blanket and put it to the side, a little bit closer to the water.

"I'm gonna go for a swim, do ya mind turnin' 'round an' close yer eyes?" She answered as a matter of fact and did a little spinning motion with her hand, gesturing to him to turn around.

He flinched. "S-swim?" He exclaimed, his eyes wide open. "B-but it's dark! An' cold an' wet an'... wait, ya can swim?" He blinked. "Ya live in the desert, an' ya can swim?"

"Well, I'm not sure if ya noticed it while ya were in Dirt, but there's been a lake outside the town since ten years back. It doesn't take ten years for someone to learn how to swim! Now, will ya please turn around?"

He winced. "B-but, what if there's monsters down there?!" He whimpered while he turned his back to her. "This place is like, MADE for monsters to inhabit!"

"Don't be silly!"

"But, Silly is my middle name! Really!"

"Really?"

"Yup, Bentley Silly Somethin'!"

"You're makin' that up?"

"Yeah... I am..."

A loud splash was heard and he quickly spun around. He couldn't see Priss anywhere, but waves were rippling on the waters surface and air bubbles rapidly ascended from the darkness below. He swallowed nervously and walked closer to the edge just as she broke up through the surface. He jumped back with a frightened yelp. Her wet, heavy hair was all curly and clung to her face as she giggled at his horrified expression, knowing that she had startled him.

"Alright, that's 'nuff, Miss!" He clenched his eyes shut and fumbled around for the blanket. "Ya better get outta there b'fore ya look like a raisin! Not that I've got anythin' 'gainst raisins, they actually pretty tasty! People are weird, I mean, how can ya not like raisins? They're soft, chewy an' sweet 'nuff to... AAH!" He screamed and jerked back in shock as he was hit by a splash of water on the back.

"C'mon! Get in the water already!" Priss laughed and splashed some more water at him.

He protected the supplies from getting wet and gave her a bemused look. "Really, Prissy?" He said and raised an eyebrow at her. "I can't even swim!"

"I'll teach ya!"

"I don't wanna learn! Have ya any idea what fur smells like when it's wet?! Not. Pleasant!"

"So? I've got fur too!"

"But yer fur is different! I ain't even a canine, but I still stink like wet dog if I'm so much as getting' rained on!"

"Awe, c'mon! Don't be such a chicken!" She splashed more water, completely soaking him.

His thick hair was heaved down by the water and now completely covered his eyes. He used his fingers to part his bangs around a clear, crimson colored eye and chuckled mischievously. "Chicken?" His eye twitched. "Oh, it's ON!"

…

Later, she was sitting with the blanket wrapped around her and was busy wringing the water out of her hair. Bentley was doing the same to his shirt.

"Look, ya got all the dirt off away at least!" She said and nodded to the shirt. He grimaced in return.

"An' now it's soaked instead..."

"Oh don't be such a drama-queen! It'll dry in the sun!" She said with a chuckle and turned back to her hair.

He tried to keep a pouting face, but eventually he just gave in to the smile and chuckled loudly. His only revealed eye twitched. She stopped wringing out her still frilled hair and looked at him from the corner of her eye. His eye was twitching a lot, and he didn't even seem to notice it. It had probably been twitching for a very long time, so he had just gotten used to it by now. Funny, she didn't even notice it herself until now, as his eyes always were partially covered by that thick, unmanageable tuft of long hair on his head.

"Hey, we got any apples left?" He suddenly asked, she jumped in a startled fashion by his sudden voice.

"I think so..." She said and peeked over at the supplies, lying scattered all over the place. "Yeah, we've got one left..." She said and got up on her feet. She walked over to the supplies when she suddenly felt a sudden, slicing pain in her foot.

She yelped in surprise and pain, and jumped to the side, tripped over a rock and fell backwards on the ground, the blanket unraveled slightly in the progress. She blushed violently and managed to cover up where the blanket had slipped off right before he turned around.

"What're ya doin'?" He asked confusedly and tilted his head to the side.

"I-I dunno, I must've stepped on somethin'..." She winced and took a look at her foot; a thin stream of blood was steadily flowing from a wide cut in her foot. "Somethin' sharp!" She added.

He frowned, got up and walked over to her. His foot suddenly hit something, which crashed into a rock and gave off a metallic, scraping sound. He bent down and picked the object up; a knife. That sort that's often used for carving in wood, however the handle was thicker than usual, like it was made for someone with abnormally big hands.

"Whose is that?" She asked with a frown and slowly backed closer to the water and dipped down her wounded foot. The cold water was making it feel better already.

"I dunno..." He shrugged. "It ain't even rusty, someone must've dropped it recently!"

"But, aren't we the only ones who knows of this place?"

"Well, I DID tell Rango... But I doubt he told anyone 'bout it! Fishy..." He said with another shrug and stuck the knife in his belt. He cocked his head at her foot. "How's yer foot?"

She lifted her foot out of the water, it was still bleeding slightly but at least she couldn't feel any pain now. "I'll live!" She nodded.

"Does it hurt?" He asked curiously and reached out his hand. He slightly touched the side of her foot, causing her to jerk her foot back with an involuntary giggle.

"S-stop that!"

He stared at her in confusion for a while, before his face broke up in a sly smile. "You're ticklish, aren't ya?" He chuckled smugly.

She shook her head. "N-no, I ain't!" He raised an skeptical eyebrow at her, and she got an 'uh-oh' feeling; he had that mischievous grin on his face again. "No! Bentley! Don'tcha dare...!"

"TICKLE FIGHT!" He laughed and pounced at her feet. She yelped, jumped out of his reach and stood up.

"No! Bentley, NO!" She laughed and backed away and held up one of her hands in front of her, she had to use the other one to hold the blanket in place. He snickered and leaned on his four paws before he slowly got up in a hunched stance. "No!" She waved a finger at him and tried to sound stern, although it was hard for her to keep herself from smiling. "Don't even THINK about it!"

Suddenly, his hand lashed out and he poked at her ribs, making her twitch and yelp.

"S-stop!" She tried to slap his hand away, but instead his other hand replaced the one that got swatted away, poking at her sides. She screamed with laughter and tried to jump away. "J-just STOP it! "

"You're the most ticklish person I've ever met!" He snickered mischievously and jumped after her, still poking at her sensitive sides.

"B-Bentley! S-stop! The blanket...!" The blanket was unraveling around her by her antics. She desperately clutched at its parting sides while fighting against the laughter.

Suddenly Bentley tripped, possibly on purpose, and instinctively grabbed her arm, dragging her down with him. They both yelped, but before they hit the ground, he managed to turn himself around, so she landed on top of him instead of on the ground. Stunned for a moment, they just looked at each other, their noses were but a few inches away from each other. He started to chuckle softly, drawing out a careful laugh from her too.

She tightened the blanket around herself and blushed as he lifted his hand and let it rest on her cheek. He brushed away a strand of her still moist hair and leaned forward, planting a careful kiss on her lips. She flinched in surprise, but closed her eyes and returned the kiss. She had to admit it, kissing him was one of the greatest experiences in the world. And yet...

She reluctantly broke the kiss and pulled away. "I'm sorry... I... I..." She whispered and shook her head, didn't know what to say really. She got on her knees and held the blanket in place with her hand.

He averted his eyes and let his ears droop. "I know..." He said and sat up, his head held low. "It's b'cause we're too different, right?"

She blinked at him. So he HAD overheard their conversation? Or monologue... "Y-ya heard me?" She still asked in confusion. He nodded.

"I brought ya here b'cause I wanna apologize..." He said, staring down at the ground. "Ya seemed to avoid me, so I thought that maybe it was somethin' I did or said, but now I know it's b'cause I ain't like ya, we're too different. I guess ya got a point there... An' I guess that's what I wanna apologize for..." He paused for a moment.

Priss' eyes were wide open as she stared at him in disbelief. _What's he...? __W-why is he blamin' himself?!_

"I'm sorry I ain't like ya, Prissy. I wish I were though... If I at least looked a lil' bit like ya an' Caleb, would ya l... like me then? W-would everythin' work then? Would ya stop avoidin' me?" He didn't get an answer so he turned his head to look at her, just to discover that she had covered her eyes with her palm and violently shook her head, spreading tiny driblets of water around her.

"No, Bentley... That ain't what I meant!" She said through clenched teeth, it was hard to tell if she was sad, angry or something in between. "What I meant was..." She sighed and removed her hand and let if fall to the ground. She looked sad, but sounded frustrated. "Don't beat yourself up like that, Bentley! There's nothin' wrong with ya!" _An' that's the problem..._ "It's just that... You're an outlaw... An' me? I am, I mean, was a deputy. A lawman! That's why it wouldn't work! That's why I..." She looked at him, pondering if she should tell him. He looked back at her, their eyes met and he quickly averted his eyes. "Bentley, there's somethin' I gotta tell ya..." She said, and he turned his eyes to her again and curiously blinked. "I don't belong here. With the rest of the outlaws, with Rango or any of ya guys! I'm not an outlaw! I belong on the other side of the law, an' everythin' I've done lately... it just ain't right! I-I can't stay with y'all, b'cause it.. It just doesn't feel right!"

"So, that's why ya wanna leave us..." He said and hung his head even lower, letting both of his eyes get completely hidden behind his dripping bangs. "An' that's why ya don't wanna be with me..."

Priscilla closed her eyes and shook her head. Their mood had took a sudden turn for the worst. To sudden! She tied the blanket in place with a hasty knot before placing a hand on Bentleys cheek and forced him to look at her. "That ain't true..." She used her other hand to swipe away all the hair from face, this was the first time she got a real, clear look at his eyes. His eyes was large, round and shifting in a blood red and slightly more pinkish tone. Even if his left eye twitched every now and then, she found that she liked his eyes. They were really beautiful, especially now when the fluorescent moss, or Gloss as he called it, were reflecting in them.

And at the moment, they were starting to fill up with tears. Once again, he really didn't look like himself; the mischievous glint in his eyes that could be seen even though the top part of his eyes constantly were hidden behind that thick curtain of hair, had disappeared, and was replaced by hurt, sadness and a twinge of fear. He looked like he was going to bawl any second.

"That ain't true!" She repeated and to her surprise, he didn't pull away from her hands. Instead he leaned in her hand and lowered his head slightly. She removed her other hand from his forehead and let his hair, still heaved down by water, fall down over his eyes again. She put her hand on his other cheek instead, closed her eyes and leaned her forehead against his. "I DO wanna be with ya! An' that's what keepin' me from leavin'..."

He looked up at her, and couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his lips. She opened her eyes and stared down at him in confusion. "How come..." He sniveled with a faint smile. "... We always gets so sad ev'rytime we talks?"

She chuckled faintly in response. He was right."Don't ask me, ya started it!" She smiled.

"Prissy... I..." He took a deep breath and exhaled. "There's somethin' I wanna tell ya... I've been tryin' to tell ya for a really long time now, but there's always been somethin' distractin' me from sayin' it, but this time...!"

"Alright Mongo, WHERE did ya drop it this time?" Calebs sudden voice, occasionally dropping and rising in tone, echoed from the entrance of the aquifer and interrupted Bentley. Priscilla tensed up, lifted her head up from his and looked at the entrance with large, startled eyes.

Bentley rolled his eyes and mumbled: "Well of course, why not just barge in here when I'm enjoying some quality mushy time with her? It wasn't like I was gonna tell her anythin' important or nothin'..."

**Okay, I have to end it here :/, this chapter was gonna be longer, but it's already 7 pages long, and it's REALLY late right now, so yeah :S...**

**But anyway, I'll see y'all next chapter again, probably won't take too long until then ;)**

**And as I said, Rangos story has just been finished, so don't forget to give it a read and a review if ya haven't already ;). I'll see if I can fire up a poll, either here on or on deviantArt, and let you guys vote for whose story I'll write next :3!**


	45. The one behind it all

**Okidokiloki, here we go again :D! Chapter 45 ;), you'll hate the ending, hehehe...  
**

***** Chapter Fortyfive : The One Behind It All *****

As soon as Calebs voice echoed throughout the aquifer, Bentley and Priscilla quickly gathered up their inventory and searched frantically for a hiding spot. They spotted a pillar, a thick stalagmite fused together with a stalactite, by the waters edge and scurried in behind it. She leaned on her undamaged foot, tightened the blanket wrapped around her and began to search for her clothes among the supplies.

"Umm..." Bentley tapped on her shoulder and pointed at the neatly folded pile of her clothes, left behind them. She cursed as she saw Caleb enter the great aquifer, shortly followed by the giant, overgrown mountain lion Mongo. To her relief, they didn't seem to notice the clothes as they walked right past them. Probably because Caleb was complaining to Mongo, apparently he had dropped something in here, which the young aye-aye wasn't all too happy about...

Caleb was holding a torch, which he stuck in a crevice on the wall and snapped his fingers. "Alright big guy, chop chop! Where did'ya lose it this time?" He said, Mongo replied by grumbling something and shrug his massive shoulders. "Well, ya better find it soon! Havin' to sneak ya out two times a day is one time too many, y'know! You're not exactly inconspicuous!" He folded his arms across his chest and his bushy tail whipped in annoyance. "Just find it already, Jonas' gonna skin me alive when he finds out that I've let ya out TWICE! An' that ya lost a knife, to add insult to injury... Again!"

Bentley picked up the knife Priss stepped on earlier from his belt and they both stared at it. So, it was Mongo who dropped this thing? How could they know about this place?!

Mongo rumbled something incoherent and went by the waters edge and began to kick around by the ground. Caleb groaned and leaned his back against the wall. "This is gonna take a while, ain't it?" He winced.

A sudden, loud clatter from a can of beans that fell from Bentleys hands an onto the rocky ground made both Mongo and Caleb jump up in the air and snap around, spotting the other two visitors to the aquifer. A moment of awkward silence arose in the dull, pale green light from the moss as the four just stared at each other.

"What. The. HELL are you twits doin' here?!" Caleb said with a growl and stepped away from the wall. Mongo didn't move, he just stared wide eyed at the couple that just appeared seemingly out of nowhere.

"We were just 'bout to ask ya the same thing!" Priscilla retorted and folded her arms. "How do ya even know this place?!"

"We found it, WAY before you two did! This is me an' Mongos place, so beat it!"

"No way! This is OUR place! I found it first!" Bentley pressed his ears against his neck.

"The hell ya did!"

"Hell yeah, I did!"

"Prove it!"

"Not until YOU prove that ya found it b'fore I did! Which ya DIDN'T! Because I found it first!"

Mongo growled in annoyance at the two arguing men and only had to take a few long strides to side up with his aye-aye friend. At the sight of the giant mountain lion, Bentley grew silent and took a few steps back, staring wide eyed at 'the Monster'.

"Oh yeah, ya haven't met Mongo, have ya, B?" Caleb snickered. "B, this is Mongo, Mongo this is B. I don't think I need to introduce ya to his slut however, you two have already met!"

Bentley shot Priscilla a quick, worried glance. He remembered that Caleb previously said something about Mongo doing something to her, but she never told him what! His eyes traveled to the scratches she had on her cheek. "They were the ones who did that to ya, right, Prissy?"

Her hand traveled to the scratch marks and she turned her eyes to the ground. "Well... I kinda... Yeah... But...!"

Before she could explain to him what happened, Bentley had turned to Caleb and Mongo and growled angrily. Mongo flinched and took a few steps back, it looked like he tried to hide behind Caleb.

Caleb put his hands up in front of himself in defense. "Woah, easy there B!"

"Would ya listen to me?!" Priscilla said frustratedly and put a hand on Bentleys arm, causing him to stop growling and turn his head to her. "It was my own fault!"

"WHAT?!" Caleb and Bentley exclaimed simultaneously.

"I... I said I got 'em from walkin' into a door, right?" Priscilla nervously shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "Well, that ain't a complete lie, I walked through the wrong door an' startled Mongo. Don't be mad at them, Bentley, it ain't their fault! If ya have to be mad at someone, be mad at me!" One of Bentleys ears flicked and he skeptically raised an eyebrow at her.

Caleb stared at her with his jaw dropped. He couldn't believe what he just heard. _Priscilla the Tramp just defended me an' Mongo? What's her problem?!_

"I'm sorry, Bentley. I just didn't wanna worry ya... You seemed pretty worried when ya left, so I didn't wanna make it worse, y'know..."

Bentley nodded slowly and turned back to the other aye-aye and the giant. "Why wasn't the door locked?!" He asked, causing Priss to sigh and slap her palm on her face.

"First of all, I would never have imagined that anyone would be STUPID 'nuff to go in there voluntarily!" Caleb replied and glared at Priscilla, she moved her palm from her eyes and glared back. "Second, I don't wanna lock him up like some simple animal!"

"Well, whaddya know, genius: we're ALL animals!" Bentley muttered and flicked his ear again.

"So what? Ya get what I'm sayin', dofus!" Caleb nodded at Mongo. "Alright, big guy. We better leave this place, these two nitwits has soiled this place for us for like, forever!"

"Whaddya mean by soiled it?" Priss frowned.

"Well, whaddya think, floozie? Judging from yer lack of clothes, it doesn't take a genius to figure out what you two been doin' here!"

She flinched. _W-what?! He thinks we...? Oh my god..._ She took a few steps back and blushed. "N-no! W-we never..." She glanced up at Bentley, and saw that even his face had gotten a bright red tone. Well, this was awkward!

"Don't take this the wrong way, B, I'm really happy for ya that ya actually managed to find someone with low enough standards who'd hop in bed with ya!" The young aye-aye put his hands up again. "I've always thought that you'd be the last person on Earth who'd EVER score! Congratulations, man! Although, I'd get myself tested if I were ya, you never know where SHE'S been!"

"S-shut up, Caleb!" Priscilla and Bentley growled simultaneously.

"But why here? There's empty rooms at the Nest, y'know! I bet that if you'd just ask Jonas, he'd gladly let ya..."

"Caleb!" Her cheeks burned in an angry red color as she once again covered her eyes with her palm. "Just... Stop it!" Bentley had also buried his face in his hand and was chuckling in embarrassment.

But Caleb had no plans on shutting up, he was having too much fun at their expense! "Wait, are ya tryin' to tell me that I cockblocked ya?" He said and cocked his head to the side, maliciously snickering. "Gee, sorry 'bout that, B, I didn't even know ya were in here! But then again, I might have made you a favor, ya never know what...!" He was finally silenced by a giant hand placed over his mouth; Mongo growled and rolled his eyes.

"Th-thanks Mongo..." Priscilla said and glared at Caleb, who was writhing and struggled to get free. And for air, as Mongo accidentally covered both his mouth AND nose.

"But HOW could ya not know anyone were in here?" Bentley mumbled. "Our 'runners were outside an' everythin'!"

Caleb managed to writhe out of the giants grip, gave Mongo an angry glare and turned to Bentley, blinking in confusion. "What roadrunners?"

Bentley and Priss turned to each other. Nobody said anything, because they knew what the other one was thinking: "Oh crap!"

Bentley rushed to the pathway leading to the outside, while Priss stayed behind to get dressed before going after him. But before he left, he remembered the knife he found, which indeed belonged to Mongo, and handed it back to it's owner. Mongo emitted a happy growling sound and went down to the waters edge, pulled out a piece of firewood from his pocket and began to carve.

Priss stood and clenched the blanket covering her tighter and peered around for her clothes.

"Y'know, it's really no use..." Caleb said and frowned, pointing at her. She turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "No idea tryin' to cover yourself up, it's not like ya got that much to hide anyway!" Her cheeks turned red and she gave him an angry snort before picking her clothes up and scurry in behind the pillar again. He chortled out a laugh at her reaction.

"What're ya even doin' down here?" She asked in annoyance while buttoning up her shirt.

Caleb shrugged, even though he knew she didn't see him. "I dunno, I bring Mongo down here sometimes... Being cooped up like some dangerous monster ain't good for him... Hey, what 'bout you idiots?! What the hell are ya doin' here, and how did ya even find this place?!"

"Bentley showed me this place, I have no idea when or how he found it..."

"Pfft, I bet I know why he took ya here..." Caleb chuckled and crossed his arms.

"DON'T start again, Caleb!" Priss exclaimed angrily. "He took me here to show that he's sorry, I went for a swim an' we were just 'bout to leave when ya showed up! Nothin' else!" She growled.

"He's... sorry?" Caleb said in disbelief and shook his head. "B's never sorry for anythin' he does! Hell, he even crushed Wes' leg in one of his little pranks, but did he apologize? Nah!" He raised his eyebrow at the pillar that Priss was hiding behind. "What could he possibly have done to you that he feels the need to apologize for? Finishin' first?"

She rolled her eyes. "No, nothin' really. But its... It's complicated. And it ain't none of yer business!"

"Fine!" He snorted. Suddenly he snapped his fingers as he remembered something. "Oh, and I've been lookin' for ya! I wanna ask ya a couple of things..."

"I bet ya do..." She mumbled.

"First, are ya completely... No, I'm gonna ask that last, or you'll just storm outta here. So, it's 'bout that town of yers, Dirt was it?"

She peeked her head out from the pillar. "Huh?"

"Is there somethin' in that there town that others, especially greedy and selfish sons of bitches, might be interested in?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"Ya know what I mean, I know yer town has a practically never ending supply of water, but is there a mine, or something else that might be profitable, if you're an egocentric and money-horny ass?"

"What should I tell ya somethin' 'bout that?" She snorted and hid behind the pillar again.

"Oh I just thought..." Caleb shrugged again. "I bet ya already know that some of us are plannin' a coup against Jonas, right?" She peeked out again and gave him a suspicious frown. He held up his hands defensively. "I ain't one of 'em! They've tried to make me join for weeks, but since they just wanna use Mongo, I've told them to piss off every time!" He hurried to say and shook his head. "But I know 'bout the plans, and I know the phony behind it all! If you're willin' to give me some info, I might be willin' to tell ya an interestin' thing or two..." He grinned slyly, while Priss gritted her teeth.

"Fine!" She said, put her hat back on and began to stuff the things back into the, now moist, blanket, except for the torch; Bentley had taken that one for the journey back to the outside. "I dunno, there ain't much in the town... I mean, sure, Dirt has definitely b'come richer an' bigger since the lake formed ten years ago, but that water's all we got!" She shook her head. "I hate to admit it, but Dirt is, an' has always been, a small, dull town in the middle of nowhere..." With the rolled up blanket under her arm, she walked out from behind the pillar and put her free hand on her hip. "Now, ya tell me more 'bout that 'coup'!"

Caleb sighed, but nodded. "Ya know, that was a little disappointin'! But sure, I guess I can tell ya some things..." He looked up at her and narrowed his large, round eyes. "Yer town's in deep shit. The guy pullin' the strings has heard 'bout the towns water resource, and he knows several towns here in the desert that would pay HUGE loads of cash for some water, b'cause just face it; here ain't exactly like Michigan, where there's a lake or wetland within every second mile radius!"

Priss nodded. "Well, who's the one b'hind it?"

"Ah, well..." He scratched behind his head. "He'll definitely shoot me if he finds out I told ya his name, but oh well; his real name is Johnny Longway, but he never uses that. He looks exactly like the guy who stabs backs every day; a tall, skinny fella, bushy striped tail, hat with two redtailed hawk feathers, a WAY too colorful coat..." He raised an eyebrow at Priss' gasp. "Sounds familiar?"

"Jet?"

"Bingo!"

Priss looked at the side, she couldn't exactly say that she was surprised. Already at first sight, she decided to never trust Jet. There had been something in his eyes she never liked; something cunning. And the feeling that he hid something. Turns out her gut feeling had been true. "But, what does he want with Dirt?"

"I told ya, floozie! He wants the water!"

"But, that can't be all?"

"I dunno, ya tell me!"

She sighed and turned her head back to Caleb. "Thanks..." She nodded and cocked her head. "Was there anythin' else?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, are ya completely dense?!" The angry tone in Calebs voice got Mongo to turn around and stare at the two aye-ayes.

"Excuse me?!"

"WHY do ya keep pickin' a fight with the Gajerras?! That's just STUPID! Besides, have ya any idea how B would react if they did somethin' to ya?! I dunno, but I DOUBT it'll be pretty! It was damn freaky the last time, and that was just b'cause they stepped on that stupid doll he always carries 'round with...!"

She flinched. "W-wait, the last time? What happened?"

"I ain't sure, but I heard that the Gajerras were pickin' on him, of course he just laughed with them, at himself, that is... 'Til Pancho snatched that doll of his away. They started teasin' him and threw it amongst themselves b'fore Francisco threw it on the floor and stepped on it... Listen, I don't wanna scare or nothin' but..." Caleb shook his head sadly. "I was outta the Nest at the moment, but when I came back he had gone completely loco! I ain't even kiddin', he was literally climbin' on the walls, trashin' stuff! Hell, he threw barrels and crates at people! Have ya any idea how HEAVY a barrel of apples is? Well, he just picked one of 'em right up and chucked it RIGHT at me! Without even breakin' a sweat! And that laugh..." He paused and shivered. "Huh! Creepiest fuckin' sound I've ever heard... Oh well, nobody was killed, so..."

"Bentley? Trashing stuff?" Priss slowly shook her head. "But nobody's told me anythin' 'bout that b'fore! H-he's never violent!"

"Not as long as ya piss him off..." The other aye-aye said solemnly. "An' unless ya want him to go apeshit again, then I suggest ya keep yourself away from them dragons!"

She didn't know what to say. "Y-you're just jokin' 'round, right?"

He shook his head. "Nope, sorry tramp. I ain't... It all happened three years ago, just a few weeks after Rango brought him along from the mountains. Apparently, he found him there, he was livin' above a town called Rattle City, in a valley called Rattle Pass... And that guy hadn't just lost a screw back then; his entire fuckin' toolbox was missing!" Priss looked down at the ground, speechless. Caleb waved his hand at her. "Anyway, ya better get goin'... Don't make him wait too long, or he might get worried!" She nodded mutely and turned around. But before she got to take a step, she heard him holler at her; "Hey, slut!"

She snapped around. "Stop callin' me that!"

"Fine, just thought ya might need this thing!" He shrugged and jerked the torch away from the wall. He tossed it to her, and she caught it, almost lighting the blanket on fire. She stared from the torch, to him.

"But, what 'bout...?"

"Pfft!" He snorted. "There's glowin' moss everywhere, I bet I can scrape some off and use it..."

Priss couldn't help but to give him a thankful nod. "Thanks..."

"Nothin'... Just get outta here so I won't have to look at'cha no more!"

She snorted and turned back around, walking out the same way she and Bentley had entered. The path went uphill now, she when she finally saw the light of the outside world, she gave up a relieved chuckle and stepped out in the settling sunlight. Even though the light was faint, it still stung her eyes after her stay in the gloomy aquifer. She blinked and covered her eyes with her hand as she threw the torch on the ground and stepped on it to snuff it out. When her eyes got used to the outside light, she looked around for Bentley, but he was nowhere to be found. Neither were their roadrunners.

She sighed and sat down on a small boulder by the river and used a dry stick to draw doodles on the ground. However, she didn't have to wait long until Bentley returned, with the two escapees. He was mumbling something angry at Grumpy, who responded by angrily jabbing his beak into Bentleys eye. He yelped and jumped to the side.

"AYY! Okay, that's IT, Grumpy! You're such a... a... Ya know what ya are?! Mbaya!" He rubbed his eye and growled at the tall roadrunner. He started raining insults upon the bird in that strange language Priss couldn't identify.

She chuckled at them as they got closer. "What did ya call him?" She asked when he handed her Birdies reins.

He shook his head. "Ya don't wanna know..."

She chuckled again, but then went silent as she remembered everything that Caleb told her. She climbed up in Birdies saddle and carefully glanced at him. Once, he had snapped. And violently thrashed about, throwing stacks at others.

"What's wrong, Prissy?" He tilted his head at her once he got up in Grumpys saddle.

She had been staring into the saddle, without saying a word. Looking worried. She shook her head and looked at him. "Nah, I'm alright!" She said and smiled faintly.

He didn't look convinced. Frowning he extended his arm and placed his hand on top of hers. "Ya look worried..." He said. "You're gonna leave us, aint'cha?"

She laughed out and shook her head, waving his hand off. "I said I'm fine!" She smiled mischievously. "Race ya back! HYAH!" She said and Birdie dashed off, .

He looked after her, confused at first, but then he snickered and clenched at Grumpys reins. "Oh yeah? I hope you're hungry, b'cause you're 'bout to eat my dust!"

…

When they got back to the Nest, Scrange, Sam and Coral had returned, the bearers of bad news.

"Blake's still alive..." Rango growled when Bentley asked about their gloomy moods. "That an' they're tryin' to rebuild the device..." They were all gathered in the Com. room, sitting around the tables. "We're goin' back there tomorrow..." Rango said and crossed his arms. He was angry, even a blind could see that. "An assassination, that scum have to go. Now!"

Coral recoiled and stared down at the table with a worried frown.

"Calm down, Rango..." Hicks said with a sigh. "We just can't go over there to...!"

"An' why not?!" The basilisk snapped. "Y'all better rest up t'night, t'morrow we rise early an' get rid of that vermin once an' for all!" Coral flinched, which didn't go unnoticed by Rango. He raised an eyebrow at her. "Coral..." He said with a stern voice. Her eyes flickered to his face, she didn't turn her head. "Do ya know how he might've survived?" He said, sounding dangerously close to an accusation. She averted her eyes back to the table.

"Coral?" Hicks cocked his head at her. "What did ya do?"

She sighed and turned her head away, slowly slithering in underneath the table. Ashamed for something. Rango groaned and slapped his palm on his forehead.

"God DAMN it, girl!" He exclaimed and hunched down, peeking in under the table. Since Corals entire body didn't fit underneath the table, he saw her head, partially hidden under her tail. She slowly lifted her tail from her face and looked with one eye at her adoptive father, clearly ashamed. "It WAS thanks to ya that he survived, isn't that right, Coral?"

Coral looked away and nodded. _Sorry, but I just couldn't let him die... _

"Coral!" Rango growled sternly. "You're unbelievable! All he did to ya an' ya SAVE his life?! Ya KNOW he deserves what's comin' for him, an' still ya... Why?!"

She didn't answer, just hid her face under her tail again.

Rango sighed and shook his head again. "Coral, you're stayin' here with Priscilla tomorrow. DON'T leave the Nest, under ANY circumstances, got it?" He didn't bother waiting for a response as he got up again. "But all of ya others are comin' along t'morrow! I've got missions for ALL of ya, I'll tell ya more as we're on our way!"

Priss held her hands under the table as she felt Bentleys big, pawlike hand gingerly coil around hers. She turned to him, his ears were drooping and he was looking at her worriedly from the corners of his eyes. He didn't wanna leave her behind, especially not after everything that happened the last time she was alone!

She gave him a reassuring smile and squeezed his hand; she would be fine! And this time she wouldn't be alone; Coral were staying behind too.

…

All around him, the rest of the gang was snoring loudly. Bentley pulled his legs up to his chin. He didn't want to go to sleep. Last nights nightmare had been the worst one yet, and he was afraid it would return. He glanced over at Priss. She was sleeping heavily with her back to him, her hair tied in a short braid once again.

He hesitated. Every time she was close, the nightmares disappeared. But, what if she wanted to be alone tonight?

He whimpered and lowered his head. He was still thinking of everything she told him in the aquifer. She was right; they had taken different paths in their life, too different. And she would probably get into real trouble if they found out over in Dirt, about them. Because she did love him, right?

He held his head between his hands. He didn't know what she thought of him. Did she like him, or not? She was so confusing sometimes! _Why are girls so weird?!_

He looked over at her again as she shifted to her other side, facing him. He ran his hand through his hair, sighed and got up. He walked over to her and quietly slipped in behind her. He wrapped his arm around her waist as he scooted closer to her, burying his face in the crook of her neck.

_Please, let me sleep here..._ He thought and closed his eyes. _Just for a short while, please?_

…

Priscilla woke up a few hours after he fell asleep. Waking up with him curled up behind her and holding her close gave her a feeling of déjà vu. She had woken up like this once before, hadn't she?

She smiled to herself and turned around, now facing hi. She let her finger follow the outlines of an uneven spot on his waist, making him twitch and chuckle in his sleep. She stifled a giggle._ Now look who's ticklish!_

Suddenly her smile vanished, and she bit her lip. She had to warn Dirt. But would they believe her? And who would she tell? Wounded Bird and Rango were probably too disappointed to listen to her, Beans was probably royally pissed, and the snakes? Hahahahaha, yeah right...

But she had to try, and then get back here quick as hell! If they woke up and realized that she had left to warn the town...

She winced and clenched her teeth together. She gave Bentley a short hug before writhing out of his embrace, replacing herself with the blanket, all rolled up. She hesitated before she bent down and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before she grabbed her things and scurried out from the room. _Bentley, please don't wake up while I'm gone!_

She ran unnoticed to the stables and woke Birdie up. While she stood and saddled the drowsy roadrunner, she felt tears burning behind her eyelids. She cursed and wiped them off.

_Stop bein' so pathetic!_ She told herself and gritted her teeth. _Yes, if Rango an' the others finds out I'll be in DEEP shit! I doubt even Bentley would be able to stop Rango or Hicks or anyone from shootin' me dead on the spot, if he even wanted to! But I HAVE to warn Dirt! BOTH for the comin' attack, AND Jets plans!_ She stopped.

That's right, Jet! She had to tell Rango and Jonas about Jet! But that would have to wait until she came back...

She was so busy in her thoughts that she didn't notice the two shadows entering the stables, making all the few awake roadrunners shift uneasily and chirp. It wasn't until Birdie began to move around and squawk in fear when she noticed something was wrong.

"B-Birdie? What's wrong, boy?"

"So, whe're ya runnin' off to, sweetheart?"

The ice cold and dark voice made her heart skip a beat. She gasped, snapped her head around and the last thing she saw before the world went black, was a pair of icy blue eyes, piercing right through her very soul.

**Aaah, my cliffys, how I've missed you (V)**

**FINALLY things are starting to get moving! Gosh, it feels like everything's gone so excruciatingly slow these latest chapters, haven't they?**

**Anyway, after an ending like this, I really have to hurry with the next chapter, right ;)? Don't worry, I'm currently writing on it :D!**

**Hehe, see ya then!**


	46. Not according to plan

**As I said: next chapter already here :D! Fast huh :3?**

**Enjoy~!**

***** Chapter Fortysix : Not According To Plan *****

The night fell over the city of Dirt, and so far they had gotten nowhere with the reconstruction of the odd thingamabob in the water tower. It just seemed impossible, no matter what they did! Eventually, Rango had to call it off for the day.

The fighters, except Mr Edwards, who had left to return Mattie to the others on Beans' ranch, made any preparations in case the outlaws would return during the night before going to bed, leaving the possum twins and Willy to take the first guarding pass.

None of them knew what the next day would have in store for them. But whatever was coming, they sure as hell were ready for it!

…

_He didn't know where they were, but that didn't matter. As long as he was there with her. Her shoulder length, raven black wavy hair fluttered behind her in the breeze. He decided to sneak up behind her, threw his arms around her waist and leaned his big head on her shoulder. _

_She responded by giggling and reached her hand up behind his neck. She knitted her fingers in the shaggy mane and turned her head slightly. At first he didn't notice, as he was busy just closing his eyes and enjoy it when she ruffled his mane. But then he slightly opened one eye and their eyes were instantly met._

_Her eyes didn't have that warm, beautiful amber color as they used to. Now they were pale blue, almost white, and with a thin slit that menacingly glared at him. He gasped in shock and staggered away from her, and she giggled again. But this time her laugh sounded different, darker, scarier; it was like hearing her voice AND both of the Gajerras voices at the same time._

_He shook his head and backed away from her as he felt fear build up inside him. This wasn't her._

"_Where is it, hyena?" The three voices emanating from her mouth said as she suddenly got a gun in her hand. She raised it at his face, pulling the hammer back with an echoing _click_. "Where is it?"_

_But before he could answer her, she pulled the trigger and a gunshot was fired. Instinctively, his hands went up to protect his face, but nothing else happened. He removed his hands again and looked around. Darkness was all he saw. He started walking and carefully call out for her._

_Suddenly he heard something: a giggle. But it wasn't her, the Gajerras or any others giggle. He tensed up. He had heard it somewhere before, and it sent shivers down his spine. The giggle was that of a madman; joyless, cold and hysterical. He slowly turned around and further away noticed someone hunching down over a lifeless body. _

_He could only feel two feelings right now: fear and curiosity. He whispered her name and walked up to the two characters. He immediately recognized the both: it was himself and her! The other him was sitting on his knees, hunched over with his shoulders shaking. But he wasn't crying: he was giggling!_

_He started to feel the fear taking over the closer he got. But then the fear was immediately overtook by sorrow, as he saw that the reason she was lying on her back, blindly staring up at the surrounding darkness, was because she was dead. A bullethole between her eyes, a big hole in her chest and face stuck in an everlasting mask of fear._

_He screamed her name, but was immediately met by an even louder giggle from himself. His other self slowly turned around, still giggling, and he could hear himself scream again: the face of the other hyena was covered in blood! The red, slow liquid dripped from his jaws as he displayed all the sharp teeth in a menacing grin._

_The insane giggle escalated into a maniacal laughter, as his other self threw his head back and started juggling with something big, red and wobbly in his hands: a heart. Her heart. _

_He felt nauseous and couldn't hear anything else than the mad throbbing of his own heart and the insane laughter from the hyena in front of him._

_Suddenly, HE was the one with her heart in his hands. The bloody, squishy blob was still warm, and when he looked closer, he noticed that it was still beating!_

_He let out another scream, a bloodcurling scream of pure horror, while his other self was rolling around on the floor, violently spazzing with laughter._

Bentley awoke with a frightened, mewling scream and jolted upright. His heart was pounding hard against his ribs and he was breathing heavily. With a sobbing whimper, he ran his hand through his hair and blinked the tears away. He tried to calm down, but he just couldn't stop seeing her with those eyes, when she was dead, himself as a complete nutcase and the worst of all: her still beating heart in his hands.

That dream had, without a doubt, been the worst, scariest and not to mention grossest dream he ever had! His hands began to shake as he sniveled and fumbled for Priss, but all he found was her rolled up blanket. His heart skipped a beat as he flicked his eyes down to the spot where she had been sleeping mere moments ago. She wasn't there anymore.

"Prissy...?" He whispered and nervously peered around the room. In the dull light he could see his friends scattered around the room. Everyone was here sleeping, except for her. He got up on his four paws, his heart started pounding even harder in his chest. Something was wrong. He just knew it; something was VERY wrong!

"Prissy? PRISSY!" He yelled, his voice were bouncing about in the room, waking the rest of the gang up. "PRIS...!" He was interrupted by Fledges boot that came flying and crashed into his head with an echoing _bonk_.

"Madre de dios, CALLARSE! " The porcupine growled, mad that he was waken up so rowdily.

"What's yer yappin' 'bout?!" Rango snarled and heaved himself up into a sitting position, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Prissy's gone!" Bentley whimpered and looked around the room for a third time.

"Don't get yourself all worked up, Bentley!" Scrange muttered and pulled his blanket over his head. "She's probably just off using the ladies room..."

Bentley shook his head. "No!" He said and scrambled to his feet. "S-she's gone! Somethin's happened! I... I gotta...!" He didn't even finish the sentence as he started running, bolting out from the Com. room and out into the main hall. There he stopped, looked around before making his way to the stables.

He looked around, and saw the four rows with stalls for roadrunners, the birds seemed anxious about something. He was about to leave the stables to continue his search, when his eyes locked on the stall Priss' roadrunner were using. It looked empty.

"I-it's alright!" Bentley told himself with a nervous chuckle. "H-he's just lying down! A-an' Prissy's probably with him! Y-yeah! S-she wanted to sleep in the stable tonight! That's definitely it! S-she probably... just..." As he made it up the stall, he saw to his horror that it was empty. "N-no... No!" He whimpered and leaned over the door, still no Birdie. Or Priscilla...

He turned around and searched the entire stable for either her or her bird. But there were no sign of them what so ever. He felt a lump form in his throat as he went back to Birdies stall. She left. She really DID leave...

He heard the footsteps of the rest of the gang entering the stables. He ignored them and leaned his forehead against the cool wooden beam between Birdies stall and the next. He heard someone walk all the way up to him, probably Rango.

"S-she left..." Bentley whimpered without lifting his head. "S-she said she'd stay... B-but she... S-she l-left..."

"Yeah, so it seems..." Rangos solemn voice said as the lizard nodded slowly. He was surprised; he never thought she'd leave, at least not now! "Well, we have to git goin'. It's almost sunrise, an' if we wanna git there b'fore the town wakes up we gotta leave now!" He put a hand on Bentleys shoulder, the hyena didn't move. "Besides, I bet she returned to Dirt. You'll probably find 'er there!"

Finally Bentley moved his head away from the beam and looked at Rango with a sad frown. He sniveled and nodded mutely before going back to the Com. room to fetch his stuff. Something was gnawing at the back of his head. He knew something had happened, something bad, but if it wasn't Priss' leave that worried him so, then what was?

Arrow watched with excitement as her master came walking up to her with her saddle. She tilted her head and stepped around on the floor, eager to leave. But to her surprise, Rango walked past her and continued down the aisle until he stopped in front of a steel gray roadrunner. The crest on Arrows head instantly rose skyward as he chucked the saddle on the gray roadrunners back instead. And then all hell broke loose in Arrows stall.

She squawked angrily and clawed at the door, trying to jump over the wall and was making enough noise to wake half of the Nest up.

"Arrow!" Rango yelled sternly and walked up to his upset roadrunner, she stopped making a fuss and glared at him. "Stop it, Arrow! Ya aren't jealous, are ya?" Arrows eyes narrowed. "Listen 'ere Arrow, you've been my best friend since we both were small, NOBODY will ever replace ya! But..." Rango sighed and stroke his bird over her pointy beak. "You're getting' ol, girl. We both are! An' now when you're hurt... well..."

Arrow jerked her head back and stared at her master in disbelief. Was he telling her that she...? The crest on her head rose again. _No! Dont'cha dare to say it, lizard!_

"I think it's time for ya to retire, an' I'm just borrowing this 'runner for this one time. Don't worry, I'll never replace ya, not yet at least!" Arrow backed away from the door, her head hung low and the crest flattened against her neck. "Oh, c'mon ol' girl! Don't look at me like that!" Rango grimaced sadly and reached out his hand at her. "The life of retirement ain't that bad y'know! I mean, now ya won't have to drag my fat ass every where!" Arrow turned her back to Rango, leaning her head against the wall and refused to move from the spot. Rango sighed, withdrew his hand and went back to the gray roadrunner. She'd probably get over it, eventually...

Hopefully...

…

As soon as they made it to Dirt, the sun was already on it's way up, peeking over the horizon. Rango and his men spread out all around the town, they all had been given their specific task. They stayed clear of the guards by hiding in the shadows and while Sam and Hicks sneaked away to the doctors office, Fledge, Flitch and Rango placed themselves by the water tower. Scrange and the unusually unexcited Bentley had been given the task to be on the lookout for the other two snakes, even if Bentley mostly were keeping his eyes out for Priscilla.

Sam were anxious to get this over with. A bullet between the eyes on that ne'er-do-well and maybe he'd FINALLY get rid of that uneasy feeling in his gut. He was covered by Hicks as he peeked inside the surgery, and spotted the pile of sheets, shaped in a highly suspicious hill. He cocked his shotgun and tried to open the window, and discovered to his surprise that it was unlocked. Sam quickly and quietly leaped inside, but Hicks immediately smelled something fishy.

They had a wounded person, who the enemy wanted dead more than anything, in an undefended surgery with unlocked windows?! "Sam! Get outta there, now!" He hissed at the bobcat, but Sam ignored him and aimed his shotgun at the pile.

As soon as the shot would end the rattlesnakes life, the entire town would wake up. And that's when Rango and the porcupines would get into action, and from the surgery, they soon heard a shot. They frowned suspiciously, that didn't sound like a shotgun shot!

And it wasn't; just as Sam aimed the shotgun at the pile and put a finger on the trigger, he heard a hammer get cocked to his side. Lucky for him, it was on the side where he still had his hearing intact, so he barely managed to avoid the bullet that got fired from Jolenes gun.

The gunshot made the entire town wake up and light were instantly lit in all houses, even Blake jolted awake; his head lashed up from the pile of sheets, still with a sheet draped over his snout and covering his eyes.

"W-wach koing ong?" He said and snapped his head from side to side, unable to see anything through the sheet that swung along with his head.

Sam quickly leaped out through the window as another bullet whizzed past, through the glass.

"I TOLD ya to get outta there!" Hicks growled, Sam mumbled something in response and they both made a run for the water tower. "IT WAS A TRAP!" Hicks yelled at the trio ducking by the water tower.

Rango cursed loudly, stuck a pair of fingers into the corners of his mouth and whistled. Bentley and Scranges head instantly peeked out from behind the saloons sign. "WE'RE SWITCHIN' TO PLAN B!" He yelled.

Bentley and Scrange gave each other confused looks before Bentley yelled back. "AN' THAT WOULD B...?"

"THE TOWNSFOLK WILL BE POURIN' ANY SECOND NOW, SO SHOOT YER WAY OUT! SHOOT EVERYTHIN' THAT MOVES!"

Bentley flinched and covered behind the sign again. "I don't like that plan!"

Sheriff Rango jolted awake by the gunfire. He got dressed faster than ever in his life before he grabbed the nearest rifle and rushed out to behind the sheriffs office, where everyone had agreed on meeting up in case this would happen.

"We never saw anyone, sheriff!" Elton said, panting wildly after running all the way there. "T-they must've used another way in to the town!"

"Anyone hurt?!" Rango hurried to ask, everyone shook their head.

"But t'fire came from Docs office, I bet they were after Blake!" Beans said with a nod at the street.

"Alright, how 'bout we return fire already?" Thomas snarled and twirled two of his revolvers. The others agreed with a simultaneous "AYE!" before they took their positions out on the main street.

Bentley couldn't spot Priscilla among the rest of the townsfolk, so he threw a glance at the prison. Maybe they put her in there? He told Scrange about his plan to search for her, the rat frowned at the idea.

"I don't think that's a good idea, Bentley. What if you get caught?!" He shook his head and nervously nodded at the water tower. "I bet Rango's demoniacal by now! What do you think he'll say if they catch you too?!"

"But they won't!" Bentley smirked confidently.

"How can you be so sure!?"

"I just know, alright! Listen, tell Rango where I've gone off to and tell him to wait fifteen minutes. If I ain't back by then, ya can leave!" Instead of waiting for a response from Scrange, Bentley jumped down from the roof and began to make his way over the street.

Scrange gritted his teeth and shook his head. _This isn't good! This is NOT good! Rango will have my tail, for SURE!_

And Rango weren't exactly pleased to hear what Bentley had in mind. He cursed a lot and loudly while the bullets were raining over their heads, but he agreed on waiting fifteen minutes for the hyena. If he weren't there by then, they would blast their way out.

Suddenly a loud hiss were heard, followed by the metallic rattling of Jakes gatling-rattle. "Oh for fuck sake..." Rango muttered as he got face to face with his old friend.

"Hello again, Rang-Rang..."

Bentley were zig-zagging between both houses and objects unnoticed, but as he sneaked up to the sheriffs offices back door, Wounded Bird spotted him. With a suspicious frown, the limping bird skipped after him with a rifle in one wing.

While inside the office, Bentley immediately bolted through the broken down door to the jail. "Prissy, ya there?" He said with an unsteady voice and peered around the cell, but it was empty. Completely empty. He leaned his head against the bars, his stomach turning and writhing in worry. "Where are ya, Prissy?" He whispered almost inaudibly.

"You there! Turn around, hands up!" He suddenly heard a solemn, monotone voice behind him and he tensed up.

He slowly turned his head around and spotted Wounded Bird, aiming at him with a rifle. "W-where is she?" He asked and slowly turned around completely.

"Hands up, I said." The crow said and pulled the hammer back.

Bentley obeyed, but kept asking: "Please, tell me where she is! I-I just wanna know if she's alright!"

The crow motioned for him to step into the cell. "Get in there!"

"WHERE IS SHE?!" Bentley let his arms fall to his sides as he raised his voice. "PLEASE! I just wanna know where she is!"

Wounded Bird raised the rifle and raised a questioning eyebrow. "Who?"

"Prissy!"

"Priscilla?"

"YES!"

"None of us have seen her since she left with you!" He skipped a few limping steps towards the hyena. "Now, get in the cell!"

"Y-ya mean she ain't here in Dirt?"

"I just told you!" The crow said in annoyance and motioned with the rifle again for the hyena to step inside the cell.

Bentley frowned worriedly and had to put his hand on his head to make it stop spinning. "S-she's in trouble..." He looked up at the annoyed crow again. "She's in trouble! I just know it! Please lemme go! I-I have to find her!"

"Get. In. The cell..."

"But, you're her father, aint'cha?! Okay, maybe not her REAL father, but ya raised her, right?! She's like a daughter to ya, right? An' ya still care 'bout her, right?" Wounded Bird didn't reply. "What if she's hurt?! A-an' need help! Listen, this mornin' when I woke up, she was gone! Poof! Vaporized! Swallowed by the Earth! An' so were her 'runner! W-we thought she returned here, but if she ain't here means she's in trouble! Please, mister Bird!" Bentley pleaded, his shoulders were slouching and his large, pointy ears dropped. "Please! I-if somethin's happened to her, I... I...!"

He was interrupted by the gatling-rattle armored tail that came crashing down through the wall, knocking both of the men to the side. Bentley quickly recovered from the blow and used the momentary confusion to scurry out through the gaping hole and disappeared among the houses. Wounded Bird cursed quietly and spat out some dust while ungracefully getting back up on his foot with the help of his crutch. To hear that Priscilla had disappeared WAS worrisome, but he decided to focus on the outlaws for now.

Rango the bountyhunter and Jake were doing some sort of cat-rat game, where Rango was the rat and Jake the hungry and royally pissed off cat. Jake were both firing at the quick, elusive lizard and swiping his tail at him in attempts to knock him off his feet, sometimes wrecking nearby buildings in the progress. The game got an abrupt ending as Rango lured the giant rattlesnake to crash into the clocktower, knocking down the heavy bell, which landed on Jakes head.

He was knocked out for a couple of seconds, before he angrily growled and shook the massive bell of his head. But as soon as he got free sight around him, he noticed that the bountyhunter had disappeared. Roaring out in anger, Jake fired at randomly and slithered away, looking furiously for the bountyhunter.

Rango had been hiding just around the corner of the nearby house, and sneaked away back to his gangs rendezvous point at the water tower. Well there, he noticed that Bentley had made it back in time. The lizard growled in anger, grabbed the hyena by his collar and pulled him down closer to his face.

"What. Do. Ya. Think. You're. Doin'. KNUCKLEHEAD?!" He growled in Bentleys face.

Bentley writhed loose. "R-Rango, she ain't here!"

"Then she must've skedaddled off somewhere far away. Hell, I bet she's halfway across the border by now! Where's the 'runners?!" He cursed and dodged for a bullet that threatened to rip through the fin on his head. _Damn! The Dirtonians gotta have some strategy goin' on or somethin', b'cause they're a lot more organized an' prepared this time... Lovely..._

"Here!" Hicks came riding on his roadrunner with the rest of the bird pack tagging along behind him.

"Great, we're leavin' this place!" The basilisk threw himself up in the gray roadrunners saddle.

"B-but what're we s'posed to do 'bout Prissy?!" Bentley anxiously fumbled with Grumpys reins before he climbed him in the saddle.

"Leave her!"

"N-no! W-we can't do that, Rango! She's one of us, right?"

"She was 'til she ditched!"

"NO! S-she didn't ditch us!"

"Oh get real, Bentley!" Rango snapped and angrily narrowed his eyes at the hyena, teeth bared in an annoyed growl. "She ditched us, an' most of all she ditched YOU! Now STOP bein' such a crybaby an' grow up! We gotta leave, FAST!"

Bentley gritted his teeth and growled angrily. "You're just sayin' that b'cause ya didn't get to keep yer girl, is that it?"

Rango flinched. "Where did ya...?" He stopped in the middle of the question as his eyes turned darker. The bountyhunter drew his gun, eyes blazing in a raging frenzy. Now it was Bentleys turn to flinch, and stared at the gun in fear. This time Rango was gonna shoot him for sure!

"Good heavens, Rango! Calm down, will ya?!" Hicks exclaimed and tried to ride between the hyena and the basilisk. But Rango ignored him and moved to the side. He was about to pull the trigger when he heard gunshots from far away. He snapped around and far off in the horizon, he saw the silhouettes of an entire posse, heading towards the town.

"Crap, MOVE! Move, move, MOVE!" Rango shouted at his men and they all took off, heading back to Crystal Canyon.

The Dirtonians cheered, and they cheered even louder as they spotted the posse. The only one not cheering was Jake, as he saw the bountyhunter ride off. Again. He snarled and lunged after the fleeing outlaws, aiming to follow them. But he was stopped by Jolene, who slithered out in his way.

"Move it, Jo!" He hissed and shook his rattle. She shook her head.

"Let 'em flee, Jacob. We'll track 'em later..." She nodded at the posse that just entered the town, and the two Rattlesnakes turned to join the others. Jake still threw a glance at the disappearing outlaws, remembering what route they took.

Sheriff Rango couldn't believe his eyes when he saw who it was leading the posse: it was sheriff Louie Graham of Dry Creek, Spoons and Harvey from Skeleton Cliffs!

…

The bountyhunter roared in anger as he threw the empty gun aside. He had emptied all the six bullets into a poor, defenseless cactus, victim for his anger. His screams of frustration echoed in the canyon below him, bouncing off its walls.

"This is RIDICULOUS!" He roared. "First, Samuel is too DENSE to recognize a boobytrap when he sees one! And then Bentley JUST HAD to go sleuthin' for his run'way bride! An' not only did we screw up BIG TIME, but now they've got REINFORCEMENTS! An' we've probably left one helluva trail for them to follow!"

"Rango, calm down..." Hicks said and held out his hand, lowering it in a calming motion.

"I AM CALM!" The lizard snapped around. His crew took all a step back.

They had decided to take a short break by a ledge, halfway down the canyon. There were cracks and crevices all around in the walls, and big boulders randomly placed across the ledge. Bentley was sitting on one of the boulders, he scratched his neck. "I-I'm really sorry Rango... For what I did an' said... But, I just wanna know if she's alright!"

"Oh I bet she is! Probably run off som'where else, somewhere where she'll be free from ya an' yer clingyness!" Rango snorted. Bentley lowered his head and averted his eyes. An awkward silence arose from the situation.

"Well, what do we do now?" Scrange said in an attempt to break the silence.

Rango sighed. "I guess we go back..."

"So, your assassination quest didn't prevail, huh?" The raccoons sudden voice made them all jump and turn to face him. Jet was standing with his arms crossed, leaning against one of the boulders further away.

Rango did a lopsided, askew and cold smile. "How did ya guess?" The smile vanished from his face and was replaced by a solemn mask. "What'cha ya doin' here, Jet?"

Jet shrugged. "Well, we were actually looking for you guys. Thanks for screaming like a cat who got his tail stuck in a door, that really helped!"

Hicks frowned. "We?"

Jet nodded and snapped his fingers. At least twenty armed men appeared from the holes in the walls, the edge above the ledge and behind the boulders. Rango and his men flinched and instinctively placed themselves in a circle with their backs to each other. Even Bentley slid down from the boulder and joined the others. All around them they had the shining black and silvery muzzles from over twenty rifles and guns aimed at them, and behind them they had the steep cliff of the canyon, plunging down in a 90 degree angle. Rango cursed loudly once again when he realized just how screwed they were.

**Commence Evil Laughter: **

**MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA:cough cough:AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAA!**

**To be continued the next chapter ;)**


	47. Under pressure

**I'm awfully sorry this chapter is late :(! I must've had an accident with my laptop or something, b'cause the screen cracked and I had to get it repaired. I still haven't got it back, but I managed to salvage the chapter on a USB, so now I'm borrowing Adis computer to finish and upload it :3...**

**Once again, sorry it's late ;_;...**

**Oh, and just a lil' warning: this beginning is EXTREMELY dramatic -.-... TOO dramatic for my taste, but meh, gotta stay true to the characters... *mumble mumble*... Seriously Bentley, get your shit together!**

…

**Ahum, let's see what happens, shall we?**

***** Chapter Fortyseven : Under Pressure *****

"Jet? What's this?" Rango growled angrily and clawed at his gun. His fingers were itching. He wanted to pull the gun out and blast the raccoons smug face with led. But at the moment, him and his men had twenty-something guns pointed straight at them, and any hasty movement would send the majority firing away at them.

"Throw all your guns and weapons in a neat pile, please! You don't wanna risk getting shot, do you?" The raccoon grinned when the gang, slowly and reluctantly, pulled out their revolvers, knifes, shotguns etc, and threw them all in a pile with a deafening clatter. Wes immediately rushed forth and collected all the weapons in a big satchel.

"So, ya were the culprit all along, huh?" Rango snorted. "Can't say I'm surprised... Where's Jonas?!"

"Oh don't worry! Our foreign friend is alive and well!" Jet said reassuringly. "However, he's rather struck with sorrow at the moment, as we had to shred his hat in order to get some information... Oh! And that reminds me!" He turned to Bentley with a sly snicker. "I've heard you've been worrying about a special someone all day, haven't you?"

Bentley felt the color drain from his face. "P-Prissy?"

"Bingo! And don't you worry about her no more, buddy! As you can see, she's alive and well!" He flung out his hand out in a gesture as the two Komodo dragons came out from one of the crevices. Pancho held a struggling Priscilla in a tight grip, with one of his large claws covering her mouth, stopping her from screaming.

She was flailing and kicking, trying to get free from the giant lizards grip, but her futile tries only amused the dragons further. When her angry, blazing eyes met Bentleys, she immediately tensed up and her large eyes widened. She shook her head and her eyes flicked nervously up to Franciscos face. He looked down at her, still held in an inescapable lock by his brother, and smirked grimly at her.

"PRISSY!" Bentley exclaimed, both in relief and fear, as he lunged forward. He came about halfway to her, before Gringo, a chubby jackrabbit with ridiculously long, dropping ears, shoved the stock of his rifle in the hyenas ribs. Bentley yelped painfully and the pain made him fall down on his knees, clutching his aching gut.

She watched him go down and tried to scream his name, however it just came out as a muffled whimper. She tried to writhe away from the lizard but to no avail, the other arm he held around her body to keep her restrained only tightened its grip and he chuckled in amusement when she began to feel the air being squeezed out of her lungs, forcing her to take short, quick, painful breaths.

"L-let her... go!" Bentley winced and looked up at Jet, only a few feet away from him. "Let her go!"

Jet nodded to the twin dragons. "You heard him, let her go!"

Pancho snorted and reluctantly threw her away on the ground. She landed on her knees and had to throw out her hands to support herself by the steep ledges edge. She turned her head at the Komodo dragons and snarled angrily, however she stopped snarling as Francisco drew his gun and pointed it at her. The pupils in her wide opened eyes dilated and she stared at the gun.

"Listen Bentley, we tried to get Jonas to give us the key to the valve, but he told us YOU have it. Is that true?" Jet folded his arms across his chest and raised an eyebrow at said hyena. Bentley didn't answer or turn his head, he just nodded mutely as he stared with eyes open wide in alarm at the gun pointing down at Priss' head. He had seen this somewhere before, but where? Oh god, the dream! The dreams he had were coming true!

"Good, you mind telling us where you hid it?"

"Tell'us fast, or t'deputy gits a third eye b'tween her already existin' ones!" Francisco snarled.

"Y-ya wouldn't do it?" Bentleys eyes traveled from the gun, to the Komodo dragons face. His heart was racing, and the adrenaline flowing through his veins clouded his mind. He wanted to give them the key, he wanted to save Priss, but he just couldn't! His mind wouldn't let him! "Y-ya wouldn't shoot Prissy!" He shook his head. "Nope, ya wouldn't!"

Francisco cocked his head at the hyena and grinned evilly. "Oh I wouldn't?" He snickered and pulled the trigger, firing a bullet into her shoulder.

Her back arched when the bullet went straight through her shoulder in the back, ripping through the flesh and bones. She screamed in pain and clutched her bleeding shoulder as she bent forward into a ball, almost falling over.

The outlaw gang gasped and took a few steps back, Hicks and Rango began grinding their teeth in anger.

"NO! NO, NO, WAIT!" Bentley screamed and tried to get up, but the muzzle of Gringos rifle held him down on his knees. "I-I WAS JUST KIDDIN'! D-DON'T HURT HER! Oh please, don't hurt her!"

"That's up to you, buddy!" Jet said, slightly annoyed that Francisco actually shot her. But oh well, as long as they didn't kill her...

_Give them the key!_ He told himself. _Just give them the bloody key! They're serious, they're gonna kill her! GIVE THEM THE KEY!_ "I-I'ts... In... Uh, the... Uh, it's inside the..." _GIVE. THEM. THE. KEY!_ "I-it's inside the haybale to the furthest left on the loft!" _… Shit..._

Jet grinned victoriously. "Alright, now we got the key. Thanks a lot, Bentley! And, you managed to keep your 'Prissy' alive too!"

"Wait a second..." Francisco growled and glared at Bentley.

Bentley felt the cold sweat break out in his palms and his pulse was through the roof. "W-what?! C-can't ya let her go now?! I've told ya where it is, please, let her g...!"

"There's just somethin' I gotta tell ya there, hyena..." Francisco grinned grimly. "The haybales ain't stacked on th'loft. They're stacked t'gether with th'rest of the feed, behind the door to th'left storage. You're lyin' t'us, aint'cha?"

Bentley swallowed nervously and furiously shook his head. "N-no! I-I'd never do that! I-I meant the haybale on the far right!"

"Wasn't it far left a moment ago?"

"N-no! I-I mean, y-yes! W-wait! I-I dunno!" Bentley clasped at the sides of his head. "I-I..."

"Stop it, Gajerras!" Rango barked and took a step forward, only to be met with the sound of several hammers getting cocked. "You're stressin' him! He's terrified that you'll hurt her, an' ya know how he gits when he's scared!"

"Oh SHUT it, ya ol' coot!" Pancho growled angrily and paced up to his brother. He snatched the gun from Franciscos hand before walking over to Priss.

She was still doubled over, her hand squeezing the wounded shoulder. She breathed heavily through clenched teeth, trying to ignore the pain and push back the tears that threatened to break free from her eyes. _Stop whining! I-it's just a lil' pain! Lil' pain never killed anyone? Oh wait, it has... _The warm blood was running down, wetting her shirt, and the more she tried to ignore the pain, the worse it got.

A sudden, cold hand gripped her by the neck and forced her up on her feet. She whimpered in pain as she was forced to move her shot shoulder and stood hunched over, still holding her shoulder and this time she couldn't stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks.

"My patience is VERY thin right now, hyena!" Pancho growled impatiently and aimed the gun straight at her head. "Where have ya hidden th'key?!"

"N-no! I...! I... I can't..." He shook his head, tears of frustration was burning behind his eyelids as he closed his eyes and tried to focus. _It's SO simple! Just pull off the god damn boot, give them the key an' they'll let her go! WHY ARE YA MAKIN' THIS SO HARD?! Her LIFE is at stake, man! STOP messin' 'round for ONCE, or you'll kill her!_ "T-the left door b'hind the right haybale, NO! I mean the LEFT haybale b'hind the RIGHT, err, LEFT door! Or, I mean...!"

Pancho snarled and bared his fangs while he began to walk backwards from Priscilla, still with the gun aimed at her. "Last chance, hyena!" He cocked the hammer.

"Ya really think he'll be able to tell ya ANYTHIN' when he's like that?!" Rango growled and began to make his way to them with long, angry strides. "Put the gun away, Gajerra, now!"

"Rango, WATCH OUT!" Sam yelled, trying to warn the bountyhunter of the chicken, hoisting his gun up into the air.

Rango just got to turn around before Bob hit Rangos head with the handle of his revolver, knocking the lizard to the ground. Rango was literally seeing stars as he tried to regain his bearings, his head hurt and the world around him span. He felt his consciousness slip away slowly, despite his tries to snap out of his stunned state.

"The doorbale... hayleft behind the door, I mean it's inside the bale on the right side behind the hay... the bayhale... Christian Bale!" Bentley had given up on trying to make sense of his thoughts. The fear for losing Priss had completely disturbed his mind, he didn't even know what he was talking about anymore! He was down on his knees, his hands holding his head while he furiously shook it so his big, pointy ears flapped to the sides.

"Alright! Got'any last words fer yer mate, sweetie?" Pancho put a finger on the trigger and squeezed it gently.

Priss slowly turned her head, first to the gun in the Gajerras hand, and then to Bentley. "B-Bentley...?" She managed to wheeze through her clenched teeth. He stopped shaking his head and turned to face her instead. His eyes were everywhere, flickering in all directions, unable to focus on her face even if he tried to.

"Prissy... I'm sorry..." He whispered, the first coherent thing he had said in a while.

"Bentley, I..." She closed her eyes and took a deep, sobbing breath. "I...!"

She never got to say what she wanted to tell him, as Panchos patience ran out and he pulled the trigger. The gunshot echoed through the canyon and her body was jerked back, her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she fell backwards. Down the steep cliff, seemingly lifeless.

Everyones eyes turned to Bentley with a gasp. They thought he would have the fit of his life, but he didn't say anything. Not a sound. He just stared with wide and teary eyed at the spot where Priscilla had been standing a few moments ago. His entire frame shook and he started rocking back and forth with his arms wrapped around himself, still silent.

The outlaws were also staring, none of them wanted to believe what they just saw. Rango got up on his knees and rubbed his pained head as it slowly dawned on him too: they had shot Priscilla. She was gone! What would Bentley do now?

…

But what nobody saw, or even bothered to check, was when she fell to what would have been her death. But right before she got halfway, someone caught her mid-air. Holding the lifeless aye-aye under one arm, Mongo began the violent and unsafe climb down. He leaped from ledge to ledge, digging the claws on his free hand into the canyons wall to break the speed.

He landed hunched over on the ground with a thud that seemed to make the ground rock. He looked down at the shot aye-aye and made a worried, grumbling sound as he ran his enormous finger along the long scratches that had began to heal up under her eye. The wounds he gave have.

"Nice work, Mongo!" Caleb panted sarcastically as he caught up to them. "I think ya might've given her a god damn wiplash from hell, all that sliding and leaping and jumpin'...!" A startled sound from Mongo made him look down and discovered the blood that gathered on the sand from her two, newest wounds; a bullet hole in the shoulder and a long slice on the side of her head. "Crap! Damn it wench, you're lucky Pancho is such a lousy shot! I hope someone of the others is good with band aids, 'cause I ain't touchin' her, no siree!"

…

"GREAT job there, Pancho! Really great!" Jet spat and bared his teeth. "I should NEVER have let you two triggerhappy morons hold the guns! Now look what you did! You just ruined our only chance to get him to tell us where he hid the key! I thought we all agreed that it wouldn't be any use in pummeling him to a pulp, as he'd just laugh at us anyway. But now thanks to you two, we'll have to think of a NEW way to get him to talk!" He angrily threw his arms out and glared at the two giant lizards. "THANK you so much for your help, Gajerras!"

"Oh shut yer gob!" Pancho spat and threw the gun back to his brother, who skillfully caught it with ease.

Francisco smirked maliciously and nodded at Scrange. "We can try ag'in with th'rat!" Scranges face grew pale as he staggered back.

Jet was just about to retort by saying that it probably wouldn't be the same thing, when he felt something hit his boot with a metallic clang. He frowned and looked down, noticing a small key glimmering in the sun. He picked it up and turned to Bentley, who was busy with pulling his boot back on his foot with shaking hands. Jet chuckled and shook his head.

"Your boot? It was in your boot all this time?" He laughed in disbelief. "Wow! You could've saved us a couple of bullets by just handing it over to us at once, you know!"

Bentley didn't respond, he just hung his head and stared at the ground. Still completely quiet. That is, he was quiet until Jet shrugged and chuckled lightly:

"Not to mention that the young deputy didn't have to sacrifice her life... Love can be a dangerous thing, am I right?"

"Prissy..." The hyena sobbed and shook his head.

"Yes her, unfortunately" Jet nodded to a few of his men. "We're locking them up in the basement. Bill, would you be so kind?"

The fat gila monster emerged from the group of smugglers and snorted at the raccoon. "As if I ain't heard that b'fore..." Bad Bill growled suspiciously.

"We ain't gonna lock ya up like these fellas did, b'cause we don't give a rats ass 'bout th'townspeople" Francisco said with an amused chuckle. "Just shut up n' don't give us a reason t'blast y'all to kingdom Come, n' I reckon we'll git along just fine!"

Bill avoided eyecontact with the much larger Komodo dragon, but still muttered bitterly. "As if I ain't heard that b'fore either..."

…

Sheriff Rango cleared his throat and introduced sheriff Woodrow and Gus for sheriff Louie; "Ahum, sheriff Call, deputy McRae, meet Louie Graham, sheriff of Dry Creek! Louie, this is sheriff Woodrow Call and his deputy Augustus McRae from Diego City!"

The little fat kangaroo rat immediately walked up to the sheriff and the deputy and excitedly shook their hands. "Well Ah'll be darned, if it ain't captain Call! I've heard all 'bout you! I've gotta say, congratulations on killin' off that maniac Mox Mox once an' for all! Ya have no idea what an honor this is for me t'finally meet'cha in person, sir!" He said eagerly while shaking the sheriffs hand. Woodrow raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. Gus however...

"An' what 'bout me? What'cha 'eard 'bout me?!" Gus grimaced worriedly, his ears and nose twitching.

Louie turned to him and frowned suspiciously. "An' you'd be...?"

Gus moaned frustratedly and threw his arms in the air, drawing out a faint, lopsided grin from Woodrow.

Rango turned to the little bearded rodent, without whom they would never have received the help from Dry Creek. "Ya did it, Spoons! Ya really did it!" The chameleon grinned thankfully. "I guess the entire town owe ya one!"

Spoons shook his overdimensioned head. "Just doin' my duty, sheriff!"

And while they were greeting the posse from Dry Creek, Harvey walked up to the snakes. Jake chuckled in amusement. "I thought ya said you'd never leave Skeleton Cliffs, eh Harv?"

"That's exactly what Ah've said, Jacob." The old skink nodded. "But Ah thought th'runner that clown over there brought along t'Skel'ton Cliffs was kinda familiar, so Ah thought hard 'bout it n' decided t'follow you 'ere. I met th'sheriff along the way, n' decided to follow 'em. Seems like Durango's still alive n' well? N' that 'runner was Arrow, I reckon?"

Jake nodded. "Yup, that was Arrow alright!"

"Ah'll be damned!" Harvey scratched his head. "N' where's that Blake? I ain't seen 'im?"

"He's been shot..." Jolene answered, quickly and solemnly. Harvey flinched. "Durango an' his men shot him an' yanked out his fang. He was really close givin' up last night..."

"How's he holdin' up now?"

"Much better! I bet he'd like to meet'cha 'gain, uncle Harv!" Jolene said enthusiastically and tilted her head. Harvey hurried to hold up his hands in front of him.

"Y'know I'd love to, Jo! But Ah reckon Ah should rest up first n' prepare, y'all know how he gits when he sees me!" The elderly skink said with a grimace.

Jolene chuckled and rolled her eyes. Oh, she knew all to well how happy her little brother got whenever they met the Rattlesnakes best friend, who's been there their entire childhood. He was like an uncle to them all, and when they met Harvey again after a long time, Blake had the habit of coiling around the small lizard and almost hug him to death. Sure, Harvey loved them just as much as they loved him, but meeting Blake was always an exciting adventure and always raised the same question: was he going to survive the encounter?

Rango told everything for Louie, and apologized for keeping it a secret. Louie nodded. "I understand" He said with a smirk. "So, when do we leave?"

Rango flinched. "P-pardon?"

"When do we go after 'em? The day's just begun, me n' my men are rested n' eager to go. I bet that after a wake-up call like that, yer people ain't gonna go back n' snooze anytime soon either, so why don't use the day to search for th'outlaws?" The short kangaroo rat threw his arms out.

"And this..." Thomas said and crossed his four arms across his armored chest. "Is why I like our sheriff!" The roach said and clicked his jaws in approval.

"It IS a good idea, sheriff Rango..." Gus said and nodded. Woodrow didn't say anything, but they could see that he thought the same as Gus.

Rango nodded seriously and folded his arms. " Yeah, ya got a point there, Louie. There's no time like the present, right?"

Without a sound, Jake joined the sheriffs in their conversation. Louies eyes widened at the sight of the giant rattlesnake slithering up so close. "If we don't get goin' soon, they'll have too much of a head start..." His blood red eye locked on Rango. "Better go an' git that scarf, sheriff. We've got outlaws to track!"

"There's one problem though..." Wounded Birds solemn voice got them all to turn to the old, limping crow. "Met the hyena earlier, told me Priscilla is gone. That she rode off somewhere during the night, so tracking with the scarf might lead us on the wrong track"

That news didn't make anyone happy, especially not Thomas. The cockroach clenched his jaws and threw his four arms up in the air. "Hey, how can we know that bastard didn't just...!"

"Shut up, Thomas" Rango cut the roach off, earning an surprised look from the other lawmen. The chameleon turned to Wounded Bird. "Did he tell you more?" He said nervously, feeling a twinge of worry for his deputy.

The crow shook his head. "If he had, I would've told you" He answered. "Don't think he was lying, seemed genuinely worried for her. Makes me worried too..."

Rango was quiet for a while, before clapping his hands together and nod. "Alright then, I guess we'll just have to depend on you and your native tracking skills!" He said to Wounded Bird, who rolled his eyes and didn't reply. "Did anyone see where they rode off too?" Almost everyone pointed their fingers in direction to the giants road and the Crystal Canyon. Rango flinched and awkwardly averted his eyes. "Oh... I see..."

They rounded up twelve people to go after the outlaws: the three sheriffs and the three deputies, Wounded Bird, Thomas, McKenzie and Doc, and of course two of the rattlesnakes.

For the first time in ten years, Rango had won an argument against Beans and convinced her to stay behind in Dirt to keep an eagle eye on everything while they were gone. Jake tried to convince Jolene to stay behind and look after Blake, but he wasn't as successful and had to give up; Jolene was coming with them, no matter what.

As they rode out from Dirt, Rango couldn't help but to feel a bit... strange. Maybe it was the news of Priscillas disappearance, but something made his stomach churn with worry.

…

None of the members of Rangos gang said anything while they were taken back to the Nest, except for Rango himself.

The lizard swiftly sided up with Bentley and looked at him from the corner of his eye; the tall hyena was walking slowly with slouching shoulders and low hanging head. His ears were drooping and his eyes were almost completely covered by his bangs as he kept looking at the ground. Rango sighed and lowered his head so the brim of his hat covered his eyes.

"Hey, Bentley..." He said. "I'm really sorry, buddy... y'know, for what I said 'bout her..." Bentley didn't answer, he didn't even seem to know that Rango was there. Rango managed to get a glimpse of the hyenas eyes, and it was like staring into the windows of an abandoned house: dark, dull and empty. He seemed to be completely lost in his own mind. With another sad sigh, Rango made his way back to Hicks side.

"How is he?" Hicks asked, but Rango just shook his head in response.

Jet, The Gajerras and a handfull of their men returned to unload the Valve, leaving Bad Bill and both his men and some of Jets to take the outlaws to the Nest. The outlaws weren't tied, but not especially hard to control, as they were unarmed and almost entirely ripped off their spirit.

Ever since Priscilla were shot right in front of them, their mood had dropped and Fledge was even seen wiping his nose and sniff every now and then. Sure, she had been new to the gang, and she hadn't even been their friend when she joined, but somehow the young aye-aye had managed to become one of them in such a short time. When she socked Scrange to the floor the first thing she did might've helped too.

They entered the Nest, which was now more or less empty, even the roadrunners in the stable were gone. Rango tried to spot Arrow, but she seemed to be missing too. Now he started know how Bentley felt before...

Something had stirred up some commotion in the Nest. Gringo grabbed a passing hedgehog, who seemed to be in a hurry, and pulled him closer to his face. "What's goin' on?" He growled, the hedgehog gulped and his eyes flickered.

"C-Caleb an' the monster is gone! T-they managed to free t-th'eagle an' the snakes, n-now they're ALL gone!" The hedgehog answered with a nervously shaking voice. "P-please lemme down!"

Gringo growled and threw the hedgehog to the ground. "I KNEW it!" He snarled with his Spanish accent. "Get these clowns to the cells, Bill, ya an' yer men now git's yer first mission: find them! ESPECIALLY that monster! Bring it back 'ere alive!"

Bill scowled. "What monster?"

"Oh, you'll know it when ya see it! MOVE!" The long-eared jackrabbit turned to Wes and Bob. "You too! MOVE!"

Both of them flinched and nodded their heads in unison. "A-alright, ya heard 'em, let's git a move on!" Bob said and waved with his gun. The rest of the men who herded the outlaws towards the main storage and the Basement, began shoving the men in front of them.

Rango snarled in frustration. It was seemingly pointless to try to flee, due to many facts; they were unarmed and surrounded by men with guns, they didn't have anywhere else to hide since the Dirtonians probably were up and about, and Bentley didn't seem to be in any condition to run. Leaving him behind was out of the question. As they entered through the massive entrance to the main storage, Rango threw a hasty glance at Bentley: he was still walking slowly in the back, staring down at the ground. All the things that happened today really did a number on him; he would've at least said something by now, but he had been quiet ever since she were shot, except for an occasional sniffing or mumbling to himself.

Rango looked ahead of them again and scowled. He knew exactly where they were going: the Basement. Where the food, drinks and any eventual captives were kept. That's where they had been more or less forced to lock Bad Bill and his thugs up, mostly to protect the safety of the Nest. And that's also where the posse from Diego City were being kept at the moment. Or at least, the ones who survived the ambush from Jonas' men after they tried to leave Dirt.

They spotted Jet as he and the men, mostly his men, were emptying the Valve of it's firepower; loading gatlings, canons and crates with weapons on wagons pulled by javelinas. Jet saw the submissive gang of bountyhunters and nodded with an evil smirk at them, Rango replied by snarling and squinting at the raccoon. All those weapons... The Dirtonians wouldn't even know what hit them!

They were taken to a short, wooden staircase deep in the furthest corner and entered a large room. A wide, oval table stood in the middle, and a lantern hung from the ceiling, spreading it's dull light. They went through another door, leading out into something that once had been a cavern, but now served as the Basement.

Jail-like cells lined up on both sides, and large crates and barrels were stacked at the deepest part of the space. They had been given specific orders to lock them all up in the same cell, but after everyone had been pushed into the largest of the prisons, Wes told them to wait before they threw in Bentley with the others.

Rango turned around when he heard the barred metal door slammed shut behind him and a key that turned in the rusty keypad. He snarled when Wes folded his arms across his chest and snickered maliciously at Bentley, who stood completely still in the middle of the room. Keeping his head down and shoulders slouching.

"For cryin' out loud, Wes! Give him a break, will ya?! Haven't ya done 'nuff already?!" The lizard snarled and leaned on the cold metal bars.

Wes chuckled and turned his head to the locked up outlaws. "In a moment! There's somethin' I wanna make clear to this guy first!" Just as he finished the sentence, he balled his fist and rammed it square in Bentleys face. He managed to knock the hyena to the floor and laughed victoriously. " DAMN that felt good! Who's laughin' now, savage?"

Bob joined in with his friend, but one of the other men frowned worriedly. "Umm, Jet didn't say anythin' 'bout..." A bulky shrew with a scar across his left, milky white eye, said, but got interrupted by Bob.

"Aw c'mon, Burt!" Bob cackled. "Don't tell me you're feelin' sorry for this bastard?! Ya ain't forgettin' that he got ya locked up for two weeks that time in Iowa, eh? He broke the banks window an' framed ya for it, ya would've been locked up forever as a bank robber if it weren't for Jet!"

"And you told us yourself what his kind did to you and your family!" A random man from the group of men said. Burt, the shrew, involuntarily ran his hand up to his eye and followed the scar with his finger. He didn't reply.

"An' there's another thing..." Wes chuckled at the hyena, who now was standing shakingly on all fours and staring down at the ground. Just as quiet as before. "It's not that I'm just mad 'bout all the humiliation, that time ya crushed me leg, or when ya went ballistic an' trashed the place. No, no, there's somethin' more. Somethin' familiar 'bout ya..." The one-legged squirrel squatted down, placing himself in eye-level with the shuddering hyena. "An' I hate it..."

"Oh for the love of... WHAT part of 'leave him alone' is it you're havin' a hard time graspin', ya big load of worthless, two-faced, butt-ugly back-stabbers?!" Rango hissed and slammed his fist into the bars, creating a loud vibrating, metallic clang that echoed throughout the Basement.

"Yeah!" Scrange had made it up to the bars next to Rango and bared his teeth in an angry scowl. "Just sod off already!"

Wes ignored them both and kept glaring at Bentley while he furiously searched his memory. When he finally realized why he was so familiar to him, his lips curled up in a wide smile, putting his yellow teeth, discolored by the regular use of tobacco and cactus juice, on display. "You're that lil' brat that Buck cared for, aint'cha?" Bentley stopped trembling, drawing out a laugh from Wes.

Bob blinked in confusion. "Buck?"

"Ah yes, good ol' Bucktoothed Buck..." Wes turned his head up to his chicken friend. "R'member when I told ya 'bout my time as a cabin boy on the ship Clotilde, many, many years ago?" Bob nodded, somewhere in the back of his head he recalled. "Well, one of th'sailors name were Buck, but we all call'd him Bucktoothed Buck, b'cause of that fang that stuck out from his mouth. He was a snake, a taipan I think they're called, an' a fine sailor! The only problem was that he was too mushy. The Clotildes captain, Captain Tip, was a merchant with a lil' side business; he bought an' traded critters, which he later shipped illegally here to be sold as slaves. An' Buck would ALWAYS come up with an excuse to spare the youngest ones from bein' kept in the cargo with the rest." He turned his head back to Bentley. "An' it wasn't 'til now I recognized you, you're that lil' whelp whose daddy came to rescue an' put up a huge fuss, eh? Too bad Tip thought he was a nuisance, an' put a bullet in his brain, haha! Wow, ya changed a lot; from a whimperin' lil' scaredy-cat to the most obnoxious son of a gun I've ever had the displeasure to meet! No wonder I never really recalled yer ugly mug b'fore!"

A chuckle spread amongst the men gathered around them. Wes turned his head to the bountyhunter and his gang in the cell and laughed at their shocked and confused faces. Bob saw them too.

"What? He never told ya 'bout himself, huh?" Bob said and shook his head.

"A mans story is his own to tell..." Rango growled and narrowed his eyes. "If he wanna to tell us, he's more than welcome to, but it's nothin' that I demand. Now, leave him be! He's suffered 'nuff!"

"Oh no, he hasn't!" Wes turned back to the hyena and growled. "He gave me loads of trouble even as a snot-faced, cryin' brat! I was ALWAYS stuck moppin' the deck, an' what did this guy do? He tipped an entire barrel of tea on top deck! You go ahead an' mop up a stinkin', gooey slob of herbs an' seawater the entire day while gettin' death-threats an' keelhaulin' promises from the pissed off captain! THEN we'll see how bloody cheerful y'are!"

More chuckles from the men encouraged Wes to go on.

"An' if that ain't all, ya managed to light the main sail on fire... HOW did ya even do that, ya klutz?!"

"Wes, stop it!" Hicks growled, joining the rest of the gang by the bars. The posse from Diego City curiously peeked out from behind the bars of their cells. They had NO idea what was going on anymore.

"But all that pales in comparison, with the fact that YOU killed Buck!" Wes hissed through clenched teeth. Bentley started trembling again and lowered his head even further. "Durin' that storm, when the mast broke an' fell! Buck was too squeamish when it came to ya, an' if ya just had moved out of the way instead of standin' there like some dumbstruck fool, Buck wouldn't had to save yer sorry ass an' get crushed 'imself!" Wes snorted, calmed down and crossed his arms across his chest. Suddenly a chuckle escaped from his split lip. "I just came to realize another thing; yer father, Buck an' now that pretty lil' deputy, they all have one thing in common: they died b'cause of ya! An' who knows who else?" He turned around completely to face the outlaws, not noticing that Bentley stopped shuddering behind him and instead slowly, silently got to his feet in a staggering, unstable manner.

"W-Wes..." Bob said and stopped laughing with the other men when he saw Bentley get up on his shaky legs.

Wes ignored his friend. "Ya wanna piece of advice, Rango?" He said to the bountyhunter with a grim grin. "Ditch the hyena. Who knows? He might cause yer deaths too!"

"WES!" Bob backed away, accidentally stepping on an iguanas toe. The iguana stopped laughing and growled at the chicken, only to discover that Bentley snapped out of his depressed state. He nudged the man next to him with his elbow, who also stopped laughing and took a startled step back.

"Now what?" Wes growled and turned around, only to discover that Bentley was standing only a few inches away from him, eyes dilated and a wide, creepy grin across his face. Wes felt the color drain from his face as he realized there were something wrong about the hyena, something crazy.

He opened his mouth to tell the men to lock Bentley up with the others, but that's when he attacked. Faster than anyone could react, Bentley had thrown himself over the much shorter squirrel and locked his jaws around Wes' throat. He ripped out a huge chunk of flesh and with the artery trashed, blood started to gush out from his throat.

The men were too shocked to move. Everyone stared with gaping mouths at the hyena as he slowly his head around. From his grinning mouth, blood was dripping down on the ground, mixing with the soil. He opened his mouth and began to laugh a low, careful laugh, which soon escalated until he threw his head back and roared with laughter.

The maniacal laughter bounced off the walls and caused the frightened men to draw their guns at him, but nobody could seem to hit him, and within seconds, the maniac had made the process short with half of the men. The survivors ran head over heels to get backup.

Hicks backed away from the bars and glanced at Rango. "R-Rango... Wh-what...?" He stuttered, not willing to believe what just happened.

Rango was staring at Bob's ripped off right wing, still holding the keys in a firm grip. The wing lied just out of arms reach for the lizard. "We gotta get outta here..." He mumbled without taking his eyes of the wing, while Bentley was bouncing around the cavern, ripping apart everything, and everyone, he saw while emitting a bone-chilling, insane laughter.

He had now officially snapped, and this time was worse than the last.

Much, much worse.

**... Yup. He lost it... He finally lost it. BIG time... Are you happy now, Niko -.-?**

**Oh god, I've got a feeling that this will get ugly in the future...**

**So yeah, as I said; I've got no idea when I will get my laptop back, so I have NO effing idea when the next chapter comes... But as soon as I get my computer back, I'll write like the wind ;)!**

**Hang in there 'til then, 'kay?**


	48. She's Back!

**Alright, FINALLY my laptop is back and it's time for the next chapter :D! Things are getting intense huh? With Bentley finally flipping his lid and all... Poor guy...**

**But I'm afraid it'll be a while until we return to him, first off: this.**

***** Chapter Fortyeight : She's Back! *****

_The world surrounding her was pitch black. She spun around while looking for something, anything, that might give her some sense of direction. But she kept seeing the same old, piercing darkness. _

_Priscilla tried to hold her hand up in front of her face, but she couldn't see it. She sighed and let it fall to her side as she began to walk, forward into the emptiness. So many questions buzzed in her head right now, like; "Where am I?" ,"How did I get here?" and "Why am I here?"_

_She had been walking aimlessly for what felt like forever until she finally saw something in the distant. She stopped and squinted her eyes at the small yellow dot of light, but soon her eyes widened again in shock. _An exit?! _She thought to herself and began to run towards the light. But then she stopped, as another sudden thought came to her head. _Am I... Dead?

_She kept staring at the dot, slightly bigger now than before. She had heard that when you die, you see a light. Was this the light? _

_She took a deep breath, bracing herself, before she began to walk towards the light again. As she got closer, she noticed that the dot of light was moving. Not moving around, but sort of flickering and twitching, almost like a..._

Fire?_ She stopped only a few meters away from the dancing campfire. She just stood there, mesmerized by the yellow and orange flames twirling and clawing at the darkness around it. It just sprouted from the black ground, like a plant. There was no sign of firewood or even a circle of rocks. There was just the fire. _W-what's goin' on here?

"_Huh, you're here already?"_

_The sudden voice got Priscilla to jump in alarm and snap around. She narrowed her eyes and peered around the campfire until she spotted the owner of the voice; a dog-like creature was sitting with his legs crossed in front of the fire. Upon a closer look she discovered that he was a hyena, no doubt. Although he looked very different from Bentley: spikey, grayish brown mane, it was hard to tell his fur color, but in the light of the fire it looked sort of yellow. He was covered in dark brown spots in different sizes and dressed in some odd, toga-like dress that seemed to resemble an uniform of some sort._

_She frowned and carefully cocked her head at him. "What?"_

"_You're not supposed to be here y'know. Not yet, at least..." The hyena said without moving his attention from the fire._

"_W-where is here?" Priscilla asked and looked around. "What is this?! H-how did I...?!"_

_The hyena chuckled and held up his hand, interrupting her. "One question at a time, alright? Go ahead and sit down!" _

_She mutely obeyed and sat down right across him on the other side of the fire. There she managed to get a closer look at his eyes, and noticed there were something familiar about them; they were rather large, round and blood red, even if they shimmered in orange from the fire. As mentioned, very familiar!_

"_Where am I?" She sighed and stared at the fire. The fire was starting to freak her out; it didn't make any sound, it wasn't fueled by anything and it didn't give off any warmth. As a matter of fact, when she carefully extended her hand to touch it, she discovered it was so cold that she had to withdraw the hand as if she got burned._

_The hyena shrugged. "Beats me!" _

_She looked up at him again and blinked. "Y-you don't know either?"_

"_Sort of..." He chuckled. "The afterlife is confusing, probably even more than what life is! Knowing what's going on is tricky, I tell you!"_

"_T-the afterlife?!" Priss exclaimed, her eyes opened wide in shock and fear. She bit her lip and looked down at her hands. "So, I'm d-dead, huh?"_

_To her surprise, the hyena snickered and shook his head. An exceptionally long strand of hair was kept in place with red and blue pearls, and it swung back and forth like a pendant as his head moved from side to side._

"_Nope!" He said and looked up at her, his red eyes reflecting the mysterious fire separating them. "That's what I told you: you're not supposed to be here! You're not dead!" He chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Silly shadowmaid..."_

_Priss also shook her head, but in disbelief. "But, why am I here then?" The questions were multiplying by the minute, buzzing around in her head and made her feel dizzy._

_He scratched the back of his neck and frowned. "I dunno..." He said and chuckled. Again. _

What's with this guy and the constant little laughs?! _She couldn't help but to frown in frustration. This guy was so familiar. His body language, the way he talked and not to mention those eyes. "Umm... can I ask ya somethin'?"_

"_You already did!" He replied without skipping a beat and chuckled at his own joke._

_She frowned. There it was again! "I meant to ask, h-have we met somewhere b'fore?"_

_The hyena grimaced and did a pained sigh. "And HOW do I explain that?" He winced as she blinked at him in confusion. "Well... I've met you, but you haven't met me! Not until now, that is..." He turned his eyes at her and returned her confused look. "That answer didn't give you that much, huh?" She mutely shook her head. "Ah, I figured..."_

"_W-who are you?" She narrowed her eyes, slowly growing suspicious towards the familiar stranger._

"_In your language, my name means Hunter"_

"_Hunter?"_

"_Yup! And I was DAMN good at hunting too! They used to tell me that if I had been born a female, I would've become a hunting pack leader in ten seconds flat!"_

"_Umm, alright then... But that still doesn't tell me much 'bout who ya are! Or was..." Priss looked from the fire to the hyenas face again, and found that he was still looking at her with his round, red eyes and a lopsided smile on his lips. "An' whaddya mean that you've met me, but I ain't met'cha?"_

"_Well, I've met you! I've seen where you come from, and your profession is pretty cool I gotta admit! And of course, he's told me a lot about you!"_

"_H-he?"_

"_Yeah, my son!" _

"_Y-yer... son?" She furrowed her brows and glared at the fire again, trying to jog her memory. _His son... His son... Wait a second..._ She looked up at him again and her eyes widened in disbelief. "Y-you're...!" She stuttered. It was so obvious! It frustrated her that she hadn't noticed it sooner! "You're Bentleys daddy, aren't you?!" _

_The hyena, 'Hunter', laughed and threw one of his arms out. "That's correct!"_

_Priscilla sat there on the spot, unable to move. Her jaw dropped and her eyes wide. Bentleys father, whom Bentley had told her so much about. Or at least what he could remember. He was now sitting across her at the opposite end of a campfire in a nowhere land of darkness. Seemingly unconcerned about the fact that he's been dead for twenty years!_

"_Y-you're kiddin', right?" Was all she could press forth from behind her trembling lips. _

"_I kid around a lot, but this isn't one of those times actually..." He said and leaned forward with his arms crossed over his knees. "'There are some things I need to tell you about... Bentley', as you call him here. Yes, he's always been a bright and special kid, he even managed to outsmart some of the most experienced hunters! Not to mention that he's the first hyena ever to climb around like a monkey... But the problem with him, is that he's always blaming himself for everything that happens. Ever since he heard that his mother died while giving birth to him, well, he's never forgiven himself for that. He thinks it's his fault that she died, and that I died. And he insists on blaming himself for practically every death he's known!" The Hunter had gotten a serious, solemn tone in his voice. He sounded very different compared with how he talked before. _

_Priss nodded and averted her eyes. "I've noticed that..." She mumbled as she fumbled with her hands in her lap. She remembered when she spontaneously decided to try to avoid him, in an attempt to stop herself from falling in love with him even more; he had instantly thought it was his fault._

"_I've been watching over him and his sister ever since I... Well, ever since I died. They've both had it rough, and to my great horror they've both more or less lost their minds, in their own ways and reasons..." He looked away and sighed sadly. "I just wish there were more I could do to help them, but being dead is a major handicap, y'know..." He shot Priss a glance. "That's why have to thank you!"_

_She twitched in surprise. "For what?"_

"_For being there for my son! Be forced to watch him slowly succumb to madness, pressured by pain of all kinds, without being able to do anything has been... Frustrating, to say the least. All I've been able to do has been to visit him in his dreams, I've been trying to remind him to not let everything get to him, but I'm afraid he's been taking everything the wrong way. He's laughing at everything, including the things that hurts him for real! He's been keeping everything inside of him for so long and tried laughing to get it all out, but it doesn't work like that! I've tried to tell him that, but it's like his mind is on repeat; I just can't get through! I'm amazed he hadn't finally snapped before he met you!" He was unconsciously twirling the long hair pendant between his fingers while he talked. Gazing at the fire with a worried expression on his face. "I've been there with him all these years. I know what he's been through, I've laughed with him, I've suffered with him..."_

_Priss was looking down at her hands again. For some reason, they had started to tremble and her vision was getting foggy. She wiped her eyes with one of her shaking hands and noticed that she was crying. "W-why're ya tellin' me this?" She whispered, afraid that if she talked louder her voice would fail her._

"_Because I want you to know how much you've done for him just by listening! Nobody can be more grateful to you than what I am right now!" A faint, thankful smile appeared on his lips. "He's a lot more rational now than he's been for years! Thank you, shadowmaid! I'm serious; thanks a ton!"_

_She looked back up at him and returned the weak smile. "It's nothing... Really! I'd do anythin' for him; I... I..." She blushed and stopped herself from talking further, looking down at the ground. The Hunter chuckled, he knew exactly what she was going to say. Suddenly she began to feel... weird, like the surrounding darkness was trying to push her out._

"_Aww, are you leaving?" The hyena said and grimaced sadly. "Oh well, I guess it's for the best... Please, be careful next time you see my son, alright?" She blinked at him in confusion and tilted her head slightly. "Watching you get shot did something to him. I'm not sure whatever's happening to him now, I can't seem to get through to him, but I can sense a great deal of anger and sorrow from him. Don't let him know you're afraid, that might trigger him further!"_

_She listened to what the hyena told her as she stared in shock at herself; she was growing transparent, from her feet and up. Slowly vanishing from the strange, dark world._

"_Oh, and may I come with a last request?" He said, she turned her attention to him and nodded. As she faded away, his voice became more and more distant so she had to focus to hear what he was saying. "Can you give him a message? Tell him his old man says hi, and nakupenda mwanangu! Think you can tell him that?"_

_She nodded as the darkness began to consume her, engulfing her mind. The last thing she saw before everything went pitch black again, was the Hunter smiling in gratitude towards her before turning his attention back to the fire. Gazing into the dancing, silent flames like he had done when she appeared._

…

She jolted awake, and were instantly rewarded with a sharp, stabbing pain in her head originating from her temple. She winced and instinctively ran her hand up to the side of her head. To her surprise her fingers met the rough texture of bandages. When she tried to move her right arm, she noticed that it was in a sling and her shoulder hurt. She frowned and stared at the bandage around her damaged shoulder. What's happened?! And that dream! She still couldn't make sense out of that dream she just had.

_D-did I just meet Bentleys... father?_ She asked herself and rubbed her aching, bandage wrapped head with her palm. Everything just seemed so... absurd! Besides, IF that really had been his father, HOW could they have understood each other? _'The afterlife is sometimes even more confusing than life'? Well, that gotta be true then..._

"Welcome back to the land of the living, tramp!" The familiar voice made her wince in annoyance.

"Caleb?" Her eyes darted to the side and spotted the other aye-aye, sitting on a rock next to a fireplace, poking around in the dying fire with a long stick. She heaved herself up to an upright position and rubbed her forehead. "Where...?" She moaned, but interrupted herself when a cup with some sort of steaming, dark green liquid, came into her line of vision. She carefully accepted it, but noticed it wasn't a hand holding the cup; it was a thin, black tipped tail wrapped around the handle. Priss looked up and met the grass green eyes of Coral, the coralsnake smiled gently as she slowly uncoiled her tail from the cup.

"T-thanks Coral..." Priss said with a nod and looked down at the strange liquid. It looked like some kind of tea, but smelled like something that was easiest described as bitter garlic. She frowned suspiciously.

"Drink it. Helps removing pain" Thunder Wings voice made her jump in surprise and turned her head to the big raptor, perched on the thick branch of a bone dry tree.

Priss nodded mutely and turned back to the beverage. She closed her eyes and gulped it down, nearly gagging on the foul taste. She coughed when the liquid threatened to return to the surface and placed the now empty cup on the ground next to her.

Caleb chortled out a laugh. "Ya drink that cactus juice like it's nothin', yet give ya a mug of that an' suddenly you're dyin'!"

She gave him a virulent look before taking a look at her surroundings; they were hiding amongst the cliffs around the Crystal Canyon, but she couldn't pinpoint their exact location. There were a few dead or dying trees scattered about, they had probably been flourishing when there actually was water in the canyon. She saw Caleb trying to keep the fire alive, Coral, Thunder Wing were there, she even saw the gray squirrel Victor running back and forth, tending to the four roadrunners tied underneath the trees, Arrow was one of them and stood underneath a tree of her own. GoldJack and Hog were sitting away from the others and seemed to be discussing something, and after a while she also spotted Jonas. The gray viper was all rolled up in the shadow of a projecting cliff, no hat on his head and he was bitterly mumbling to himself. They all looked bruised and beaten.

"W-were are we?" Priss slowly got up on feet and walked over to the others.

"Dunno, but we're hidin' out here for the time bein'..." Caleb answered muttering without taking his eyes of the fire. "Where's that big buffoon? We need more firewood, asap!"

"Hidin'? What for? An' where's Rango an' the others?!" She kneel down next to Coral and rubbed her head, the pain was slowly going away. Both in her shoulder and head.

Caleb stopped cussing at the fire and raised an eyebrow at her. "Whaddya think, Sherlock?" He said. She opened her mouth to come with a foul reply when Thunder Wing interrupted her;

"Little Warrior Mouse doesn't remember, does she?" He skipped down to the ground on light feet, his talons scraped almost inaudibly against the rocks. She blinked in confusion at the big bird and shook her head. Thunder Wing sighed. "Shortly after Hunter in Black left with his men, Rainbow Coat and the ones he managed to corrupt and trick into joining the devious plan, siege the Nest. Managed to defeat Pattered Back Snake and us..."

"Yeah, an' those assholes thought they keep me locked up, HAH!" Caleb snorted and crossed his arms, leaning back against the rock he used to sit on. "Mongo broke the door down an' we managed to get ev'ryone on our side out. Jet ruined Jonas hat, so that he would tell 'em where the key to the valve were. Turns out Bentley hid it, go figure!" Priss flinched, this all started to sound very familiar. Caleb cocked an eyebrow at her. "An' if ya hadn't run off, maybe Bentley wouldn't have been such a nervous wreck when they threatened ya! You're lucky Pancho is the worst gunman in the West! He wouldn't even hit a barn door if it so were right in front of him! Not even if he had a gatlin'!"

"I didn't run off!" She snapped.

"Then what happened?" Thunder Wing leaned his head closer to Priss, his smoldering yellow eyes were reflecting the fire. He didn't try to be threatening, but still he got Priss to nervously move backwards, away from the raptor. "Little Warrior Mouse disappeared, Laughing One searched everywhere. He never found her!"

She blinked in momentarily confusion at Thunder Wing. _Little Warrior Mouse? That's me, right? _"I... I dunno..." She said and averted her eyes. "I can't remember... I don't think I remember..." She closed her eyes and focused, slowly beginning to recall that morning.

She woke up in Bentleys arms in the middle of the night. Awoken by the nagging feeling that she had to tell Dirt what was going on. She owed them that. She left his side for a moment, to warn the town and get it over with, then she'd return. But as she stood in the stable, making herself and Birdie ready for departure, the Gajerras entered the stable. They sneaked up on her and knocked her out and that was it. That was all she remembered.

"But I wasn't gonna leave them! I know I wasn't!" She said and looked back up at the eagle. "I was gonna warn Dirt about Jet an' his plans, but the Gajerras jumped me in the stables and when I woke up, I was here!"

"Well, ya gotta remember SOMEWHERE in that thick head what happened! I mean, ya were awake and kickin' when they brought ya out and started wavin' that gun in yer face!" Caleb lifted his clenched hand, extracting his thumb and index finger like a gun and pointed the 'barrel' at her. "Pang! Doesn't that ring a bell?" She silently shook her head.

Suddenly Mongo appeared, carrying a big, dry tree trunk on his shoulder. It was longer than Mongo himself and almost as thick, yet he seemed to carry it without even breaking a sweat.

"Finally! There ya are! You've been gone for a while ya know!" Caleb said loudly to the overgrown mountain lion as he entered their little camp.

Hog and GoldJack paused their conversation and watched Mongo with wary eyes. Coral and Victor tensed up, and even Priscilla felt a bit nervous as the giant appeared. She still had flashbacks from when Mongo attacked her, even if now he seemed completely different from back then. The only ones who didn't seem disturbed by the giant were Thunder Wing and Caleb; Jonas was too busy with sulking over his hat to bother.

Mongo didn't say anything, instead he shot Priscilla a quick glance before slowly dropping the trunk on the ground, dangerously close to Caleb. "Wait, Mongo! Wait, WAIT, WAIT!" The teen exclaimed in panic and had to jump up and skitter to the side to not get crushed. "WHAT is yer deal, buddy?! First of all, I WAS SITTIN' RIGHT THERE!" Mongo gave his aye-aye friend a puzzled look before tilting his head to the side, like he just now noticed that Caleb was there. "Second, how the hell are we gonna be able to use THIS as firewood?!" Caleb pointed with a stiff finger at the massive trunk, resting between him and the fire. "We ain't even got hatchets, y'know!"

The mountain lion lifted a heavy paw and scratched his neck before shrugging. He said something, but it was like he tried to growl the words. It was nearly impossible to hear what he was trying to say, yet Caleb seemed to understand.

"It's alright, but you'll be the one who'll have to come up with a way to split this log to manageable pieces!" Caleb said with an annoyed sigh and turned to the ones who were staring at Mongo. "An' what're y'all gawkin' at?!" He growled. Coral and Victor quickly turned their heads away and pretended to be studying the ground, Hog and GoldJack hurried to continue their talk.

Priscilla was the only one who didn't turn away, and Caleb noticed that. He raised a warning eyebrow at her. She ignored him and tilted her head at the giant, chipping away chunks of wood from the trunk with a sharp rock. When he felt her eyes studying him, he stopped hammering on the trunk and looked at her. His scarred face was neutral and his green eyes blinked at her. She averted her eyes.

"So... Mongo, huh?" She said without looking up and he tilted his head slightly.

"Yeah, so?" Caleb said dryly and bitterly crossed his arms. "What's with him?"

"Nothing! He just seem so..." Priss said and looked at the giant again when she heard him pick up the hammering again. "Different..."

The other aye-aye snorted. "No, he ain't! Mongo never changes, that's why he's the only one here ya can trust..." The last part he added in a low voice, barely mumbling to himself. Mongo heard they were talking about him, and listened with his ears perked. "Ya know, if it weren't for him you'd be nothin' but a splatter on the cliffs, so STOP gawking at him like he's some kind of fuckin' freak!"

"Hey, I ain't gawkin' at him!" She turned her eyes to Caleb, narrowing her eyes at the teen. "An' don't tell ya... saved me again?"

"Ya bet yer ass we did, slut!" He answered, adding a faint, smug smile. She winced. "But it ain't exactly somethin' I enjoy either, so we're both sufferin' from yer ineptitude!"

"Then why in tarnation dont'cha just let me die then?"

"What, ya got a death wish or somethin'?"

"No, but if ya hate my guts so badly, WHY do ya keep haulin' my ass outta trouble all the time?!"

He went quiet and looked down at the ground. "I have to... Aye-aye's stick up for each other, y'know..."

Now it was her turn to be silent, just sitting on the ground with her legs crossed and stared at him in disbelief. "W-what?" She managed to stutter after a few seconds of silence. He didn't respond, he just stood there with his arms crossed, leaning his weight on one leg and stared solemnly at the ground. "What's that s'posed to mean?" She repeated through her gritted teeth.

"Classified!" He looked up from the ground and tilted his head at her. "It's somethin' only aye-ayes should know..." He averted his eyes to the rest of the group around the campfire. Even though they seemed to be minding their own business, one could never be too sure.

Priscilla opened her mouth to say something, but right then Mongo dropped a bunch of firewood right next to the fire before sitting down himself. Priscilla shot him a curious look. First time they met, he had tried to maul her, but now he didn't even seem to know she was there. He flickered his eyes to her and she flinched before turning her head away. Okay, he knew she was there.

"So, you were the one who saved me this time?" She carefully looked at him again. "Thanks!" She tried to pull off a faint smile, but to be honest; she was getting mildly tired of having to get her sorry tail saved from time to time, ESPECIALLY by someone like Caleb and Mongo.

Mongo replied with a quick nod and turned his head to Caleb and smiled a cocky grin; his way of saying: 'I told you so!'. Caleb rolled his eyes.

…

"So, if I get this straight; Jonas were attacked an' the mutineers forced him to speak by wreckin' his hat. Rango and his gang were ambushed on their return from Dirt an' are now captives in the Nest. They threatened me to get Bentley to give them the location of the Valve key, but he got so stressed out an' started talkin' gibberish, resultin' in the Gajerra losin' their patience so Pancho shot me down from the cliff?" Priscilla went through all the information they just told her about the days event.

"Yeah, an' you're damn lucky that Pancho couldn't even hit an elephants ass if it so were mooning at him!" Caleb said and waved a finger at her. "I bet he's more near-sighted than an bat!"

"What make's ya think he's near-sighted?" Victor asked and impaled a marshmallow on a stick before holding it over the fire.

"Helloo, haven't y'all noticed that he constantly keeps his face an inch away from yer whenever he's talkin' to ya?"

"Oh... yeah... Well, I guess it would make sense as their ma were blind. Or at least that's what they've said!"

"Except I've heard that it was those assholes that made her blind in the first place... Hey, wonder if Fagcisco is near-sighted too? I mean, they're twins for cryin' out loud!"

Priss pulled up her knees to her chin and stared at the fire while listening to the two teens discussing Panchos possible vision-impairment."But why...?" She asked and they both got silent, averting their attention to her. "Why do all that just to get someone to talk? Why ruin Jonas hat, an' why threaten me?!" She shook her head slowly. "Why don't just do like normal badguys an' just get his goons to beat 'em?"

"B'cause that's what Jet does; he relies on psychology, much rather than physical pain..." GoldJack said solemnly. Hog and him had joined them. They had been discussing for almost an hour, arguing on what they should do: stay and help, or high-tail it out of there. They decided on staying and then went on how they should do to get their hands on some of the weapons Jet had, looking as themselves were practically unarmed. Needless to say, they didn't come up with anything.

Hog nodded in agreement with his pal. "He watches ya, study ya to find yer weakness n' then use it 'gainst ya!" The boar shuddered. "Sometimes, Ah think he's even worse than th'Gajerras..."

Suddenly Priss stood up from the ground, causing the others around the fire to flinch and look at her with puzzled looks on their face. Caleb stood up too when she began walking away, throwing his arms out. "Hey harlot, whered'ya think you're goin'?"

"I'm goin' to the Nest!" She answered without turning around and started looking amongst the tied up roadrunners. She sighed in relief when she found that Birdie was one of them and walked up to her bird.

"An' why the hell would'ya do that now?!" Caleb raised his voice, which accidentally became much higher pitched than intended. Mongo laughed a rumbling chuckle at his friends patchy voice. Caleb gave him an angry look and the giant immediately shut up.

"B'cause I'm gonna free Rango an' the guys, an' I'm worried 'bout Bentley!" She snapped and went to look for a saddle. It was true, IF her meeting with his father really had happened, and what he said had been true, then something had happened to Bentley. Something bad!

"Godamnit! Ya can't go now, twat!" He exclaimed and ignored the angry look Coral gave him. "Listen, they're probably lookin' for us, an' if they were to find us here we're fucked! We've got practially NO weapons, an' with you there's only three here who can handle a boomstick, so if you leave us now you're leavin' us as sittin' ducks! Besides, the Nest is probably CRAMMED with Jets lackeys right now, HOW are ya gonna free Rang-Rang on yer own, huh?!"

She didn't answer him, she just stared at a tree where a torn off rein were hanging from a branch, gently swaying back and forth. "Victor..." She said and turned her head to the campfire.

The young gray squirrel perked his ears. "Y-yes, ma'am?"

"Didn't ya tie Arrow to this'ere tree?"

Everyone went silent and stared at the tree where Arrow once had been tied to. Rangos black roadrunner was gone.

**Alright, gotta end this here! Oh well, at least y'all got to know that Priss is alright, AND met Bentleys father :D! I've had that scenery in my head for a while now, just felt that it had to happen xD! Although I've rewritten it like, five times but I'm still not entirely happy with it -.-... Oh well...  
**

**Anyway, see y'all next chapter, it shouldn't take too long until then ;)**


	49. Awkward reunion

**AAAND we're back again! And this chapter is ridiculously long o_o! The reason this chapter is so godawfully long is because I had to smash everything together in this chapter, because I want the next chapter, number 50(!), to be a... special one, MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**

… **Ahum... ._.  
**

**Anyway, enjoy~!**

***** Chapter Fortynine : Awkward Reunions *****

Sheriff Rango glanced at the other sheriffs of the posse, riding alongside with him. They all looked determined to catch the outlaws no matter what, and Louie even seemed to be having fun. The two Rattlesnakes were slithering behind the group, keeping their eyes peeled for any tracks or clues. Despite being in constant motion, Rango could see that Jake was grinding his jaw.

According to Wounded Bird, they might be headed for the dried out canyon by the road, the Crystal Canyon, where Thomas, McKenzie and the twin deputies of Dry Creek had been discovered and taken captives by Coral, Bentley and Priscilla.

"Is that the canyon over there?!" Jolene asked, rising her head over the riders on front of her to have a clearer view of the gorge ahead.

"Yup, that's Crystal Canyon alright!" Rango hollered back at her, still keeping his eyes on the canyon.

They had searched the canyon for what felt like hours before Wounded Bird announced that he found tracks. The sky was slowly turning into a faint pink shade, telling them that the sun was about to retreat, and the posse were growing tired and impatient. When the Crow told them he picked up a trail, Thomas exclaimed a loud 'Halle-frickin'-lujah!', earning the usual response from the other men from Dry Creek: "Shut up, Thomas!". They followed the tracks for a while, until they got onto a wide ledge, a dead end. Rocks and large boulders were scattered around the ledge, and the steep wall was littered with cracks and crevices. Thomas was cursing loudly while throwing his hat on the ground and stomped on it. Everyone else turned their eyes to Wounded Bird, who was studying the ground with a bothered frown on his usually emotionless face.

"Tracks of many men" He said with his monotone voice and poked at the ground with his crutch. "At least thirty..."

"THIRTY?!" Thomas exclaimed and stopped stomping on his hat. "Are ya trippin'? I bet those schmucks just decided to have a hoedown, that's all!"

"Then how come there's signs of people all over 'ere?" McKenzie poked his head out from one of the larger cracks and waved with a burnt out match, someone had been lighting a cigarette in there.

The roach shrugged his four arms. "Too much cactus juice?"

Jolene suddenly stopped and perked up, the pupils in her eyes narrowed into slits. "Jacob..." She said, her brother stopped and turned to face her. "I smell blood..."

Jacob frowned before letting his tongue dart out of his mouth. There were indeed blood in the air, but it was old, probably a few hours, and hard to pinpoint who it belonged to. Although the scent was pretty familiar... Could it be Rangos deputy, Priscilla?

They heard Rango gasp, shortly followed by a shocked "Arrow!". Everyone snapped around and immediately spotted the black roadrunner, blocking the route with her head slightly cocked to the side. She looked like she was limping slightly, and a bandage was wrapped all over her torso, her wings sticking out from the white fabric made her look pretty ridiculous. But god forbid anyone laughed, thankfully they were all too suspicious of the runner to give the mummy-esque bandages any thought.

"A-Arrow?" Rango narrowed his eyes in disbelief while the posse cocked their guns, waiting for the roadrunners owner to make his entrance. But to their surprise, nobody was seen, or heard. It was just the roadrunner.

Arrow chirped and tilted her head to the other side before turning her back to the posse. She squawked and made a nodding motion with her head.

"I-I think she wants us to follow..." Rango said and glanced at the posse members, who all were glaring at the bird with suspicious frowns and clamped jaws.

"Ya still can't recognize a trap when ya see one, sheriff?" Woodrow snarled lowly, referring to how they met in the first place.

Arrow squawked angrily again and repeated the nodding movement she did with her head again, this time in a bigger, annoyed fashion.

"Y'know, somethin' makes me doubt this is a trick, Woodrow" Gus said, glancing at the prairie dog with a raised eyebrow.

"Like what?"

"I dunno, jus' a gut feelin'..."

"If ya follow that bird you'll probably do more than feel yer guts, you'll see 'em!" Thomas let one of his hands rest on a the handle on one of his revolvers. "I bet my hat that son of a gun is just waitin' 'round that bend for us..."

"Then it's a deal, bug!" Jake said and slithered past them, his gatling-rattle giving off soft, metallic clangs as it scraped against the rocks. "If Durango wanna jump us, he'd do it already and we wouldn't be talkin' right now; we would be covering 'mongst the rocks, dodgin' his bullets!" He hissed and glanced back at the posse, who stared wide eyed at the snake. "Ya do whatever ya want, but I'll follow the bird. Whatever she wants, it's gotta be important" He turned his blazing hellfire eyes back to the roadrunner. "It better be!". Arrow replied by rising her plume and hiss lowly.

"I'll come with ya, Jacob!" Jolene said and slithered over to her brother. "It doesn't make any sense why she would be out here alone, seein' that she's hurt n'all!"

The two rattlesnakes were shortly followed by Rango. The chameleon rode up to the black roadrunner. "Lead the way, Arrow!"

Arrow squawked again as she began to walk down the cliff, the posse slowly and cautiously following her. Woodrow kept one hand hovering over the handle of his revolver, just in case.

Thomas mumbled bitterly. "Somehow, 'I told you so' just won't be 'nuff, I reckon..."

However, none of them saw the small group of five men, silently watching them from above the gorge.

...

Priscilla glared at the campfire. They managed to convince her to stay, although the worry was gnawing at her insides, and the cause of her worry was Bentley. _What if he got hurt real' bad? What if the Gajerras began to beat him up since threatenin' me failed? What if they... _She paused, swallowing nervously. ..._What if they killed him?_

"No, Mongo!" Calebs irritated voice brought her back from her thoughts. "I'm NOT mad! I'm frustrated! That's two entirely different things!"

The giant tilted his head slightly at his friend. Caleb was sitting with his legs crossed back on the rock, since Mongo had moved the tree trunk out of the way. The giant gurgled out a short, incoherent growl, but Priss could've sworn she heard the word 'why?' somewhere in there.

"B'cause Jet is 'bout to get his way, an' I hate it!" He angrily crossed his arms. "Jet is just a slimy little prick with an ugly ass coat! Oh, and he gotta have a masters degree in Stupidity! I mean, he actually thought that I'd just let 'em take ya and force ya to do their dirty work, HAH! What an ass!" Mongo cocked his head at Caleb and raised an eyebrow, the young aye-aye sighed in defeat. "Alright, I guess I'm a little bit mad..."

Priss listened with little to no interest to their conversation while letting her eyes sweep over the encampment; Hog, Coral and Thunder Wing were nowhere to be seen, Jonas was still moping underneath the rock, Victor was running back and forth between the roadrunners, cursing loudly, and GoldJack had dozed off against a tree. Nobody seemed to be paying any attention to the others around them.

"Caleb..." Priscilla said, turning her head to the teen. Either he didn't hear her, or ignored her, in any case he didn't react. "Hey, brat!" She said a bit louder, this time his head snapped in her direction.

"What?"

"What did ya mean with that thing ya said b'fore?" She said, earning a bewildered look from him. "That thing, 'aye-aye stick up for each other'?"

"Oh... That!" He said sheepishly and scratched the back of his neck. "Well, it means just what I said, tots: 'aye-ayes stick up for each other'!" She narrowed her eyes at him. She had a feeling there were something he wasn't telling her, and he noted her suspicion. "What?"

"Ya ain't exactly what pops up in my mind when I hear the word 'chivalry', kiddo..."

"Hey, that's what he told me!"

"Who?"

Caleb went silent for a while as he averted his eyes. "A friend..." He said lowly.

This perked Priscillas interest. A friend? Caleb has had friends? She cocked her head at him and her left corner of her mouth was tugged up in a sinister smile. "Who'd ever wanna be friends with ya?"

The other aye-aye chortled out a dry, sarcastic laugh. "Ha ha ha, really funny, tramp. You're hilarious!" He said with an agitated roll of his eyes. "I know what you're askin', but that story is a long, sappy one and I won't bother tellin' it to ya, g'night!" He said and was about to slide down from the rock to leave when he came to an abrupt halt and hoisted into the air; Mongo had grabbed him by the neck and lifted him back upon the rock.

He snarled and waved the giants hand away. "Hey! What's the big idea, Mongo?!" Mongo grumbled something and did a short nod at Priss. "No way, why should I tell her?!" Caleb replied with an annoyed snort. "It ain't none of her business!" Mongo was about to keep nagging on his friend to tell her their story, but she shook her head and did a short wave with her hand at them.

"It's alright Mongo..." She said. "If he don't wanna tell me, fine. I ain't that interested anyway..."

"Woah, woah, woah!" Caleb said and squinted suspiciously at her. "That's clever!"

She blinked at him in confusion. "What's clever?"

"That! That thing ya did! First you act all nosy, askin' questions n'all, then you nonchalantly act like you just don't give a fuck anymore, in an attempt to make me spill the beans! You're one of those sly bitches who use reversed psychology, aint'cha?"

Now it was Priss' turn to roll her eyes. "No Caleb, that ain't what I was doin', an' it ain't reversed psychology!"

"Okay, maybe that's not what it's called..." He mumbled and looked down at the ground. Mongo nodded with his head at her again. "Why?" Caleb snorted and glared at the giant. "WHY should I tell her?"

Mongo growled something again, this time the words were clearer and easier to pick up; "Aye-aye"

Caleb kept staring at Mongo with furrowed brows and an angrily whipping tail, before sighing in admitted defeat. "Fine!" He turned his head to her. "I'll give you the short, short version: due to, errm, unfortunate events, I had to run away from home. A couple of days later I wound up underneath a cart, which belonged to a travelin' Cirque du Freak, not exactly hard to figure out what kind if circus that was, huh? Anyway, Umbra Buchinger, or 'The Great and Powerful Umbra' as his stagename was, took me in. When I asked him why he helped me, he just simply answered 'b'cause aye-ayes stick together'. He told me to do the same if another one needed help." Caleb paused and shrugged. "There ya have it! I have no idea why, but that's just the way it is!"

"Not 'specially long an' sappy..." Was Priss' disappointed answer as she glanced hastily at the giant sitting hunched over next to Caleb. _Cirque du Freak? A freak show?_ She instantly had an idea where he might have met Mongo.

"Hey, I said I gave you the short, SHORT version! There's no reason to tell you my ENTIRE life story, y'know!"

She shrugged. "That's true, and I never asked for it anyway!" She noticed that Mongo stared back at her so she averted her eyes. "I guess..." She said quietly. "That's also where ya met Mongo, innit?"

Caleb mumbled something and glared down at his feet. "Yeah..." He said bitterly through clenched teeth. "I freed him the same night I ditched that place... And I can see that you wanna ask why, so I'm gonna answer just b'cause! What else was I s'posed to do? He doesn't belong in a freak show! He ain't no freak! But to them, 'Mongo the Monster' was just a money magnet, he was their main attraction, y'know! And I saw kids throwin' rocks at him, and poke him with sticks just to make him angry! I just couldn't leave him there, for cryin' out loud!" Mongo started patting Caleb on top of his head to calm him down, but the giant mass of curly hair being pressed down in his eyes were more of a nuisance to the aye-aye and he started swatting with his small, thin hands at the giants enormous paw. "Knock that shit out! You're messin' with my hair!"

The subject seemed to upset Caleb greatly, yet Priscilla couldn't help but to leer at him. "So, you're pretty much the sucker on the inside, huh Caleb?"

"Shut up!" Was his annoyed response, which made her giggle even louder.

Suddenly they heard rocks tumble down the walls, Caleb instantly snapped his head to Mongo. The giant frowned and shrugged his wide shoulders.

"Sch, someone's a comin'!" Hog said as he seemingly materialized out of the shadows with a rifle in his front hooves.

Everyone immediately got to their feet, even GoldJack woke up from his slumper, drew his gun and hid behind the tree he had been napping against. They heard the footsteps coming closer and closer from the narrow path which served as entrance/exit, and when Priscilla put her hands on her hips, fumbling for her revolvers, she found nothing.

_Gajerras..._ She growled in her mind and fumbled for the knife in her boot, but even that thing was gone. She was entirely unarmed.

"Ey, miss!" Hog said and threw her his revolver, a clumsy Smith&Wesson with a short pipe.

She nodded gratefully to him, but were grumpily grinding her teeth on the inside. This thing was going to be hard to hit anything with! She turned her attention back to the path, just in time to see a familiar shadow emerge.

"Arrow!" Priscilla breathed in relief and lowered the gun. The others did the same while cursing when they discovered it was just Rangos bird who returned.

"Wait a sec..." Victor said nervously. "Where have ya been all this time?"

As on cue, at least ten men appeared from the shadows, armed to the teeth and aiming their guns at the group. Priscilla winced when she recognized them all.

"Sh-sheriff Rango?" She said and staggered back when the chameleon sheriff stepped in front the others, holding a revolver in his hand.

He lowered the weapon and nodded at his young deputy. "Long time no see, Priscilla!"

…

Jet watched the town, barely visible at the horizon. The lake was glimmering and it's surface reflected the sun shining over the land. It would soon set, and Jet wanted to get this thing over with before nightfall, so he threw a nervous glance over his shoulder for the eighteenth time, at the two Komodo dragons quarreling behind him. They had been at it ever since they left the Nest with all the necessary weapons on no less than five wagons.

They had heard the news that Bentley attacked the others and took it as a cue to high-tail it out. However, the mood between the Gajerras had turned hostile. Or, 'hostile-r'.

"You're gettin' soft, brother!" Francisco hissed at his twin, who replied by baring his razor sharp teeth.

"Shut yer gob, Franko! I ain't gettin' soft, you're th'one gettin' paranoid!" Pancho retaliated with his dark, gravelly voice. "I hit 'er! Ya saw it yerself!"

"I saw 'er tumble down a cliff!" Francisco narrowed his cold eyes. "I didn't see'no bullet-'ole tho..."

"What diff'rence does that make?! She's dead! Nobody could've s'rvived a fall loike that!"

"Ya snatched that gun 'way from me 'cause ya knew you'd never hit 'er, me on th'other 'and..."

Pancho snarled and grabbed his brother by the front of his west. "Ar' ya tryin' to tell me that I didn't wanna kill that bitch?" Francisco didn't answer him, only the corners of his mouth were pulled up in a malicious grin. "I ain't gettin' soft, Franco!" Pancho repeated with a lowered voice and let go of Francisco. He turned around and walked over to the pitch black, giant roadrunner he was riding. The exceptionally large birds feathers shifted in a blueish green color, and while the other roadrunners backed away from the approaching Komodo dragon, he remained still and just watched his master with round, almost pure white eyes. He wasn't prepared for the knife Pancho suddenly drew from it's scabbard and jabbed in his throat.

Jet quickly turned his head away from the scene, but he could still hear the blueish black roadrunners painful squeal as it sank down to the ground and twitched while the blood gushed out from the open wound. The other roadrunners panicked and tried to run away, but they were all tied to a rope that stretched between one cactus to the other. Even Franciscos runner, a just as large albino, seemed slightly alarmed.

Pancho turned to his brother again as he sheathed the knife. "Next time you're callin' me soft, it's YER neck I'm cuttin'!" He snarled at Francisco and walked over to the wagons, probably to harass someone to forget about his frustration. And loss.

Jet dared to turn around completely and watched with a horrified expression at the dying roadrunner, a pool of blood spreading underneath it and colored some of its feathers crimson red. He glanced at Francisco and noticed that the Komodo dragon was smiling widely as he watched his brother pull a short, stubby fox down from a wagon and beat him up, for no reason at all.

"Y'know, he rais'd that thing..." Francisco said without taking his eyes of Pancho. "He stole th'runner as a chick when we were kids n'raised it. It saw Pan as it's mama, n'I reckon he was might' 'tached to it too!" Franciscos grin grew wider when the rest of the men tried to pry the berserking Pancho away from the fox before he beat the poor bastard to death.

Jet gulped. "T-then why did he kill it?"

"To prove to himself that he ain't goin' soft. 'Cause I sure as hell didn't buy it..."

"Why do you think he's going soft?" Jet glanced at the fighting scene by the wagons. Pancho looked anything but weak.

"'Cause I bet my ass he was protectin' th'lassie..."

"I don't think so, he bloody shot her, didn't he?"

Francisco shook his head. "Nah, if he wanna 'er dead he wouldn't have taken th'gun 'imself... He know he can't shoot even if so his miserable life d'pended on'it..." The dragon paused and chuckled. "Such a fool; gettin' too 'tached could kill, y'know!" He finally moved his eyes and looked at Jet from the corner of his eye. Jet felt a cold chill creep up his spine.

"Y-yeah, I know..." He crossed his arms and dusted off some dirt that had gotten stuck on the arm of his coat. "Why do you think I used Bentley to kill the rest of the goons in the first place?"

"'Cause ya thought you'd kill two flies in one blow, 'ncludin' the r'venge 'gainst 'im for th'pranks?"

"Well, that and since I actually had something to hold against him! Something very powerful..."

Francisco arched an invisible eyebrow. "Love?"

"Bingo!"

The giant lizard chortled out a laugh. "Says th'one who even sleeps with 'is coat on!" He said and made his way to his brother to stop him before he dealt too much damage to the other men. They would be of better use if they were unharmed.

"I don't sleep with my coat on!" Jet protested and scurried after the Komodo dragon. "For your information, it hangs next to the bed on a chair! And that's because this thing was bloody expensive!"

Francisco ignored him and grabbed his brother by the neck to pull him away from the bloody critter below him. "Calm down, Pan! No idea gettin'all work'd up for some bird!" Pancho snapped around and narrowed his eyes at his brother, shrugging his hand off.

"Alright you've both had your fun now, can't the family feud wait until we're done?" Jet said and waved his hand at a couple of bruised men to take the dead roadrunner away from the others.

"Our fun?" Pancho snarled. "We nev'r gotto'ave our fun, r'member?"

At first, Jet didn't get what the Komodo dragon was hinting at, but then he recalled and couldn't help but to let out a restrained sigh. "We needed the deputy unharmed! If I hadn't interfered, god knows what you two would've done to her!" He ignored Franciscos chuckle and Panchos growl. "And you know, afterward I would've gladly let you two have your way, but you just HAD to kill her, thus spoiling..."

"So what?" Pancho snarled, interrupting the raccoon mid-sentence.

"Huh? Whaddya...? Oh..." Jet frowned in horror while Francisco burst out in a mad, roaring laughter.

Pancho couldn't help but to chuckle at the raccoons disgusted expression. "Jus' kiddin'!"

"Th'ell ya did, Pan! The HELL ya did!" Francisco clutched at his gut and shot a glance at Jet. "He got that from papas side, y'know!"

Jet shuddered and turned his back to the dragons. "You know what? Let's just go down there and run those hayseeds out of there, okay?" _Before I throw up_. He added to himself.

…

The tension between the posse and the group of escapees were so thick you could cut it with a knife. Priscilla kept her mouth clenched shut as the entire posse from Dirt came out from the shadows. The Nest escapees didn't have any choice but to put their weapons down and throw their hands in the air.

Priss counted for sheriff Rango, Woodrow Call and Louie Graham, their deputies Augustus McCrae, Elton and Tarrant, along with McKenzie, Wounded Bird, Thomas, Doc. She thought she had counted them all when Jake and Jolene appeared and she staggered back in a startled fashion as Jolene slithered up to her, lowering her massive head to Priss' level.

"Good news, sheriff Rango!" The rattlesnake mused. "It looks like we've found yer missin' deputy!"

"I know..." Rango nodded and shot another look at Priscilla, the aye-aye lowered her head. He was eying her wounded arm with mixed confusion and curiosity.

When Mongo stood up from the ground to stand behind Caleb, the posse could see the giant in his full length, which got several of them to take a few steps back. "Well, ain't this great! JUST what we needed..." Caleb growled and let his hands fall down to his sides again, the posse pointed their guns at the teen. Ready if he would try to pull something off. "Listenin' ya big clowns, we ain't got time for this! Neither do you for that matter! You've got bigger troubles than us comin', I'm just sayin'!"

"Ay, what did the beggar with the dorky hair say?" Thomas perked his head up and turned his attention from Hog to Caleb.

"Excuse me?" Caleb gritted his teeth. "I'd prefer dorky hair over a pair of fru-fru antennas any day!"

"Who'cha callin' fru-fru, kiddo?!"

"The Alabama roach tryin' to pull off a Mexican bandito-minus-the-sombrero' look! Lemme just say this: you are in DESPERADO need of a new wardrobe!"

"Says the freak wearin' a patchwork tunic! What time do ya think it is, middle ages?"

"At least I don't look like somethin' Sergio Leone barfed up! Now, are you gonna shut those maws up or am I gonna have to go and fetch my bug spray?"

"HAH! Bring on the pesticide! I've been nuked by humans b'fore, y'know, an' not to mention that my great grandfather SLEPT through Hiroshima! Ya can say my legendary sturdiness runs in the family!"

"That's a lie: nobody runs in yer family, fatass!"

"THAT'S IT! You're dead, kiddo!"

"Oh no what're ya gonna do, regurgitate on me?"

While Thomas and Caleb did some verbal jousting, Priscilla took a deep breath before she scurried past the female rattlesnake in front of her and walked up to Rango. She felt the posses eyes watching her, and tried her best to shake the unnerving feeling they gave her.

"Sh-sheriff Rango..." She said and stopped only a few feet away from the chameleon sheriff. "There's somethin' I gotta tell ya, it's important!" Rango was quiet for a while, before gesturing to her to go on. "I-it's 'bout Dirt. Rango, the other Rango, ain't the only outlaw here ya should be wary off. There's this man, a raccoon. He calls himself Jet, but his full name is Johnny Longway, and he's gonna...!"

"Johnny Longway, eh?" Gus chuckled and leaned forward on his rifle, whose muzzle buried down in the ground due to the old jackrabbits weight. "Woodrow, the missy says Johnny Longway's here!"

"Yeah, I heard 'er..." The old sheriff muttered.

"Ya know Jet?" GoldJack burst out, earning a short nod from Woodrow.

"Sort of... He was arrested in Diego City 'bout half a year ago. He was caught cheatin' in a poker game..." The prairie dog turned his head to Rango. "He's just a sneaky lil' coward, I reckon he's completely harmless to Dirt!"

Priscilla nodded. "That's true, Jet alone is harmless to Dirt. But he ain't alone; he's got the Gajerra brothers by his side!"

"THE Gajerra brothers?" Tarrant exclaimed and allowed himself to lower his gun from Hogs face momentarily.

"Francisco an' Pancho Gajerra?" Elton continued, just as startled as his brother. "The sons of Alphonze Gajerra?" When the name Alphonze were mentioned, Jake and Jolene twitched and they gave each other meaning looks, apparently thinking the same thing.

"Yeah, those Gajerras. An' I'm tellin' ya, they're nothin' like they're described on their posters; they're worse..." Priscilla said with an involuntary shiver. "An' if that's not enough, he's got fifty more men on his side... An' they're all headed to Dirt!"

"Woah, hey, hold up!" Thomas interrupted his and Calebs 'formality exchanges' to interject. "So, what you're tellin' us is that a wimpy schmuck has gathered an army, plus two homicidal psychopaths, an' are as we speak marchin' t'wards a lil' frontier town in the middle of the bloomin' nowhere? AND you're expectin' us to b'lieve that bullshit?"

Priss stubbornly crossed her arms and nodded. "Yes!"

Thomas couldn't even come up with a response as he was busy laughing his guts out, so it was Rango who had to ask her: "But, what do they want with Dirt?"

But before Priss had the chance to answer, Caleb was the one to open his mouth first. "The water, of course!" Their attention turned back to the teen. "He wants the town so he can make a profit outta the water!"

"But where do the other men even come from!? Ya said he had fifty of 'em? Last time we saw him he was alone!" Gus was the one ask.

"Thej ver maj men..." Jonas slithered out from the crevice he had been hiding in for the bigger part of the day. The posse hadn't spotted the gray snake in the shadows, so when he emerged, most jumped in surprise. "But nov thej're all fired... BIG time!" The viper said and gritted his fangs.

Gus cocked his head at the newcomer. "An' you're...?"

Jonas immediately stuck his snout up in the air. "Aj am Jonas Kjellberg Smith...!"

"Nicknamed the Smuggler King?" Jake filled in with a raised eyebrow. The viper glared at the much, much bigger rattlesnake and nodded. "Then I reckon we two got business to discuss..." The rattler said and cocked his gatling, readying it for battle.

"Gentlemen, an' lady, may I have a word?" Woodrow said lowly and waved for the other sheriffs, deputies and the snakes to come closer.

As the lawmen and rattlesnakes were standing around and talked, the remaining posse members were keeping their eyes on the outlaws. Priscilla and Wounded Bird made eyecontact and an awkward silence grew between them. She was the first one to look away.

"H-hi, dad..." She mumbled, he nodded in response. They went all quiet again.

"You disappeared?" He suddenly said, causing her to look up at him.

"Huh?"

"Met the hyena, he told me you were gone"

"Oh, yeah... that..." She looked down at the ground again. "I kind of had a lil' accident with the Gajerras, I think... D-did he seem, y'know, worried?"

"A lot"

"Of course B was worried!" Calebs patchy voice piped up as he placed himself next to Priscilla and grinned smugly.

Her eyes narrowed at the other, slightly taller aye-aye. _Caleb, don't!_

"I mean, he finally found someone who'd wanna..!" But before Caleb could finish the sentence, Priss threw a desperate punch straight on the nose. It wasn't enough to sock him to the ground, but it did shut him up for a while at least. "GOD DAMN IT, WOMAN!" He staggered and clamped his hands over his nose. It didn't bleed, but it hurt like hell! "Who'd wanna laugh at his stupid jokes, LAUGH! I was gonna say LAUGH! What's WRONG with you?!"

She folded her arms across the chest and ignored the puzzled looks they got from the posse, including Wounded Bird. "Sorry, was just takin' precautions, that ain't what you'd usually say!"

"Gee, whaddya think of me?" Caleb muttered and turned to Wounded Bird. "But then again, I bet she's also the only one who'd voluntarily hop in bed with him too!" He laughed and jumped out of the way for another of Priscillas punches.

"I KNEW IT!" She hissed angrily and felt her cheeks turn a bright red color.

"Ya knew what?" Jakes voice made her stop and turn around. The lawmen had all agreed on something and turned back to the others.

"Y'all from Dry Creek heads over to Dirt to check th'situation there..." Woodrow ordered solemnly. "Let's not hope what ya said is true, Miss..."

"But it is...!"

"Shut yer trap an' answer us this..." Jake interrupted her and lowered his head, so his flaming hellfire eyes stared straight into her round amber colored ones. "Where's the bountyhunter?"

"R-Rango? I think he's in trouble as well..." Priscilla said quietly as she staggered back from the intimidating snake.

"Rang-Rang in trouble, huh?" Jolene smirked. "Serves him right!"

Jake didn't share his sisters malice, but frowned and squinted at the young aye-aye in front of him. "Tell us more!"

…

While Louie along with his deputies, the cockroach and the fennec, rode off to Dirt, Priscilla told them all she knew and could remember, then the rest of the Nest escapees had to fill in the gaps. All the while they talked, the two remaining sheriffs exchanged looks. Rango wanted to believe everything Priscilla told them, but Woodrow had pointed out that she was one of them now and everyone, except for the three from Dirt, agreed with the aging sheriff of Diego City. They couldn't just believe anything any of the outlaws said!

"So this 'nest' you're talkin' 'bout, where is that?" Jake demanded to know, but Jonas shook his hat-less head.

"Its kalled THE Nest, and it is teh most vell-hidden hideut in this land, vi ar NOT going to tell jo vhere it is!" The little viper said, remarkably gutsy considering the huge difference in size, power and venom between him and the massive rattlesnake in front of him.

"Let me remind ya, pipsqueak: I've been hired to kill ya. I could just shoot ya down right here an' now an' git it all over with, but if you'd tell us where yer 'Nest' is, I MIGHT let'cha live to see 'nother day!"

"Teh previus Smuggler King trusted me with this jobb, Aj'd rather die!"

"No problems!" Jake cocked his gun, but before he got to shoot the viper, the scree of a bald eagle broke through the gloomy light of the sunset and a large shadow swept over the area. Jake instinctively recoiled into a bun and backed off against steep cliff wall. Jolene drew her gun and studied warily the mighty bird slowly come to a landing between the posse and the escapees.

"Nice timin', Thunder!" Caleb snorted. "Think ya could've made it a tad sooner? And where's Coral?"

"No." Answered the raptor and narrowed his eyes at the posse, studying them one by one. "And Burrower is watching the town of Dirt. She probably have no good news, but Thunder Wing brings good news! Too bad he can't tell them now..." He raised a meaning eyebrow at the posse.

"Oh, don't mind us, Mr!" Rango hurried to say and threw his palms in the air. Woodrow rolled his eyes at his colleague.

"Thunder Wing, it's 'bout the Nest, innit?" Priscilla asked and stepped in front of the eagle. Thunder Wing nodded slowly. "Then tell us! Tell us now!" She was well aware of the hint of panic her voice had, but didn't care for the moment.

The raptor frowned suspiciously at the posse. "Very well, Thunder Wing was soaring over the Nest after Rainbow Coat left, and he suspects Rainbow Coat brought them all from there."

"Wait, so you're sayin' the Nest is unguarded?!" Caleb exclaimed and frowned. "What 'bout Rango and the others?!"

Thunder Wing shrugged. "It seems farfetched, yes. But Thunder Wing didn't see anyone around. There could be men inside, but Rainbow Coat brought along a smaller army, along with five wagons..."

Priscilla turned to one of the saddles lying on the ground and picked it up before making her way to her roadrunner. She heard the clicking of hammers being drawn back, but she ignored them. She wasn't sure if the other Dirtonians would shoot her, but she knew that Woodrow and Gus probably wouldn't hesitate for a minute. The same went for the Rattlesnakes.

"Hey, where d'ya think you're goin'?" Thomas and Caleb asked simultaneously and gave each other a short, cranky glare.

"To the Nest..."

"NEJ!" Jonas piped up, he suddenly grew paler. "J-jo'll lead THEM rajt to it!" He said nervously with a nod at the rattlesnakes.

"I'm sorry, Jonas..." Priscilla said while placing the saddle on Birdies back. It was tricky to manage the heavy saddle with one arm, seeing as her other arm was still in a sling. "But I don't care! I..." She paused and closed her eyes, holding the saddle-girth in her hand. "I need to see Bentley... I need to know if he's alright!"

Rango sighed and shook his head._ So it WAS the hyena after all... This is certainly going to complicate things!_

"Oh, Aj'm sure hes fine!" The viper waved with the tip of his tail. "Hes just a littel bit of worried, thats all!"

"Bentley don't get a lil' bit worried." Priscilla strapped the girth and turned back to the viper. "He's either very happy, or very sad. I've never seen him somewhere in b'tween those two!"

"And don't tell me you've managed to forget what happened three years ago, Jon!" Caleb poked at Mongos arm, drawing the giants attention and nodded at him, a sign that it was soon time to leave. "Go ahead and call me weird, but I ain't cheering loudly at the thought of him goin' bananas again! IF he's close to losin' it b'cause of Sluterellas feigned death, and if she can stop him, then I think it would be wise to let her go, dont'cha think so too? It's not like you're short on hideouts!" Jonas didn't answer, he just let his head hang low and muttered something to himself.

"An' if it would mean that you'd let me go, then go ahead an' tag along..." She said to the posse and climbed up in Birdies saddle. Neither of the men seemed to be trying to stop her. As a matter of fact, some were climbing back up in the saddles of their birds as well.

"Nejnejnejnejnej..." Jonas sobbed, and Priss couldn't help but to feel genuinely sorry for him; for years he had managed to keep the Nest in the Crystal Canyon hidden for outsiders and lawmen, but now an entire posse was going to be led straight to it. No wonder he was having a minor breakdown!

She turned her head away and got Birdie moving by yelling a sharp "Yha!". She knew the others would follow her, so she didn't even bother to look back as her roadrunner ran through the narrow chasm and came out to the dried out river. She stopped for a minute to regain her bearings. After a while she recognized it as a place where Bentley and her had passed when he was going to show her the aquifer. The Nest wasn't far away. She turned Birdie and followed the dry river upstream, determined to get to the Nest as fast as possible.

Soon she heard the feet of many roadrunners thundering over the sand, so she turned her head around and saw the posse, along with other escapees and the Rattlesnakes. Thunder Wing was seen flying away like a dot on the sky, probably to find and tell Coral. The only ones she couldn't see were Mongo and Caleb, but she decided not to worry too much about them. There was someone else currently occupying her thoughts as it was.

**Okay, I think I'm stopping this here, before it gets too long... And hold on to your hats, everybody! Next chapter is coming soon, and I'm not going to give away too much, but I think I'll say this: don't eat while reading it. And don't read it before going to sleep! I'll try my best not to let it go overboard with the creepyness, but you never know ;)... Oh crap, who am I kidding, it's Bentley; of course it's gonna be creepy as hell D:!**

**I decided to take the opportunity to throw in Calebs past, or at least a part of it. Sorry to make y'all disappointed, but he isn't related to Prissy at all ;). At first I was actually pondering if it would be possible that those two could be brother and sister, but then I remembered that Priscillas parents both died shortly after she was born, and Caleb is younger than her (a LOT younger, actually! You can NEVER guess his age ;P) so it probably wouldn't work like that :/...**

**Oh, and I've been doing some thinking, and I don't think there's any use in starting a poll regarding next story in the Outlaw Archives, is it? I mean, Bentley is probably going to win by a rock-slide anyway... Lol, everyone wanna know the madmans story, right xD? Alrighty then, I just started writing the first chapter of Bentleys story, 'The Laughing One', not sure when it's done though, but I'll be sure to let you guys know ;)**


	50. The Madman

**Wow, chapter 50 huh? Great Scott, I NEVER imagined this when I started this fic o_o. I expected this fic to be 'round 20-30 chapters long, but then a few unexpected things happened, like the Bentley and Priscilla romance, the Smuggle King joining the party, the Gajerras etc. And suddenly, this mammoth is fifty chapters long, and it's not even close to ending yet o_o... It's going to feel so weird when this finally gets wrapped up, and if things continue like this, I expect the ending to come somewhere around chapter 70... Yeah...**

… **And omg, I'm having another one of those "Oh holy cheesecake, what have I written?" thoughts when it comes to this chapter o_o... Chapter 50 is a special one, as I promised... A little TOO special TT_TT**

**This is definitely the longest chapter yet, and in a while, this chapter will be probably the most gory thing I've ever written (and ever will write again), and I think I even managed to creep myself out here! So, I'm so, so sorry, any sensitive persons and hemophobiacs who happen to read this. I really am so, so sorry :(... Consider yourselves warned though! I'm pushing the M-rating to the max!  
**

**That's all I'm gonna say... Hope you'll somehow enjoy it anyway! (Keep a bucket close)**

***** Chapter Fifty : The Madman *****

It didn't took long for them to reach the entrance to the Nest. While the posse from Dirt randomly scoured around the area, not even knowing what to look for, Jonas slithered up to the hidden door and pulled it open. Priscilla took a deep breath before walking towards the entrance, but Woodrow and Gus managed to brush past her and cautiously sneaked inside, their guns loaded and the hammers clicked back.

Inside everything was gloomy and dead silent. Not a single sign of life anywhere. But that didn't mean that they could relax just yet. At least not in Woodrows opinion, as he told everyone to stay on their toes as soon as they stepped inside. When sheriff Rango walked into the entrance hall, he couldn't help but to gaze up at the roof and whistle. Jake barely fit through the entrance, and was hardly impressed by the hall, although Jolene seemed more intrigued by the underground hideouts origin, and immediately began to pester Jonas with loads of questions.

Shortly after them came Mongo and Caleb, the giant accidentally gave them all a fright as he knocked over an unlit lantern from a crate. The glass and metal object crashed to the stone floor and shattered, making the posse quickly snap around with their guns drawn.

"Woah, we're sorry 'bout that!" Caleb hurried to say and threw his hands up in defense. Everyone went silent and listened if there was someone else who might've heard the lantern crash. But when no voices or footsteps were heard, Gus cursed something about a 'deranged freak', and turned to Woodrow.

"There doesn't seem to be anyone 'round 'ere, Woodrow..." The old jackrabbit said and holstered his gun again.

Caleb walked up next to Priscilla. "Yo slut, they're all probably stuck in the Basement, if Jet decided to lock 'em up that is" He said. "And I can bet my sorry ass that B's down there too!"

She cocked her head at him. "Where's the Basement?"

"C'mon!" He waved at Priss to follow him as he began to walk towards one of the corridors.

Woodrow noticed them separating from the group and immediately aimed his rifle. "Hold it, y'two!" He barked, and the two aye-ayes along with the overgrown mountain lion stopped dead in their tracks and turned to the old sheriff. "And just WHERE d'ya think you're goin'?"

"Listen gramps, we THINK we're goin' to find the others. I know where they might be!" Caleb replied with a roll of his eyes.

"Ya really think we'd let ya leave all by yourselves?"

"It would've been for the best, yeah. I can't imagine any universe where Rango might be happy in this situation, and I know that y'all might've noticed this, but when Rango gets mad he tends to get outta control. The last thing we need right now is a royally pissed off Rango meetin' his copycat over there!"

A silence which quickly grew awkward arose in the vast entrance hall as everybodys eyes turned to the chameleon sheriff. Sheriff Rango gulped nervously and shrugged.

"Y-y'all know I-I didn't mean to..." He stuttered, but were interrupted by Caleb.

"Yeah, well, try to tell Rango, the real Rango, that! Boy, you should've seen him after he 'eard 'bout you and yer tall tales! We had to shove a poster of a guy with a 5k dollar bounty on his head in his face to git him on other thoughts than to ride over to Dirt and separate yer body from yer head with his own hands!"

"Alright, alright! I guess I might've overdone a bit, but it was ten years ago, wasn't it?!"

"Overdone it a bit? Tell me, Rattlesnake-Jake, how did you react to the happy news of yer long lost brother Rango showin' up in a nowhere town and start yabberin' tons of bullshit?"

A fain grin was visible in the corners of the rattlesnakes mouth. "I r'member almost dyin' of laughter"

"Then you handled the news better than HE did!" Caleb pointed to another corridor, just to the right of them. They curiously followed his finger and saw who it was he pointed at; A tall, green lizard with a sharp fin on his head and a ridged tail, all dressed in black. He was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and watched the gang with narrowed, yellow eyes. The bountyhunter in black himself.

"I thought I heard somethin' over here!"

The reaction was instant when the posse from Dirt saw him and they all aimed their weapons at him. The clicking of multiple hammers being drawn back was deafening, and Jolenes growl of anger sent chills down the rest of the posse members spines.

"Y'all really gonna shoot an unarmed man, huh?" The bountyhunter smirked. "Congratulations, ya just stooped to my level!"

"Oh, we'll let this one time slip past the code..." Jolene snarled. "Ya shot my brother, ya filthy maggot!"

"Woah, watch that mouth, girlie! Did ya teach yer sister that, Jake?" Rango the bountyhunter moved away from the wall and let his arms fall to his sides. "An' for the record, I wasn't the one who shot Blake, Sam did!"

"Then I'll kill that Sam too, after I'm done with ya!"

"Listen, Jo, this day went to hell in a handbasket already this morning for both me an' my men, killin' me would probably piss them off even more. An' I ain't the only one who gets nasty when he's mad, Hicks has quite the temper too y'know!"

"Aww, poor lil' Rang-Rang an' his goons!"

Now it was Jakes turn to growl. "Then what do ya suggest we do instead?"

"Put down the weapons, I hate havin' those things pointed at me when I can't point back!"

Jolene laughed dryly. "As if!"

But to everyones surprise, Jake was the only one who withdrew his gatling-rattle. The others stared blankly at him in confusion before reluctantly following his example. The last one to put his rifle down was Woodrow, the old prairie dog snorted in dismay as he slowly let the muzzle point down at the floor instead.

"Thanks! I see Victor, Hog and GoldJack are here too huh? Great, first thing's first: where's Arrow?"

"She's outside with the other roadrunners. She's exhausted from movin' 'round so much, since she's hurt n'all..." Victor answered with a nervous nod to the entrance.

"Good, VERY good! Coral?"

"Thunder Wing just went to retrieve her, she'll probably show up here any minute now!"

"Perfect! An' Jonas, I'm terribly sorry 'bout yer Basement... I reckon you'll have a livin' hell gettin' that place cleansed out!"

The gray viper grew pale as the color drained from his face. "V-vhat happened?"

"Bentley happened"

"B-Bentley?" Priss made it past the group of Dirtonians blocking her path, pushing them aside using her unharmed arm.

Rango raised both of his eyebrows in surprise when the ex-deputy emerged from the group. Other than the damaged shoulder, the fresh slash on her temple and all the other minor wounds she had, she seemed fine. "Well, if this ain't a pleasant surprise!" He said and threw his arms out. "You're alive! Too bad you're too late, though..."

"W-whaddya mean?"

The bountyhunter scratched the back of his neck while scrunching his face in a troubled grimace. "It's hard to explain..." He mumbled and looked back up at the deputy.

She felt her heart skip a beat. "He isn't... hurt, is he?"

"I dunno..." He shrugged and shook his head. "Haven't seen him since he tried to crush my face..."

"WHAT?!"

"Nothin'!"

"Where is he now?!"

The bountyhunter hesitated for a while before answering: "Come with me..." And signed with a winking finger for her to follow him. Priscilla began to walk after him into the corridor, but a hand grabbed her wrist and held her back. She turned around and saw that it was sheriff Rango holding her back. With a frown she yanked her hand and ran to catch up to the bountyhunter.

The chameleon took a step back, surprised, but then he nodded to the rest of the posse. "C'mon, we better follow them!" He didn't have to say that twice. However, to the Rattlesnakes dismay, it turned out that the corridors were too narrow for the two large snakes, so they were more or less forced to wait in the hall. Jake rolled himself up in a bun and pulled the hat over his eyes, he was planning on finally getting some shuteye, but his sister didn't seem to agree.

"Why didn't ya shoot him, Jacob?!" She hissed angrily and swatted away his hat with her tail.

"Why didn't YOU shoot him, Jo?" Jake hissed back and retrieved his hat with an annoyed groan, as it had flown further away from him than his tail could reach.

"B'cause I thought YOU wanna shoot him! He tried to kill our brother, y'know, an' nearly did it too! But ya just gone n' let him go, AGAIN!"

Jake placed his hat on his head again and glared at his sister. "Shut it, Jo! I'm just as angry at that bastard as ya, but..." He paused.

"But what?!"

"But it's what that deputy said, that Als kids are on that Longway-guys side, that's troublin' me... Ya r'member Al Gajerra, dont'cha?"

"I couldn't forget that asshole if I so tried to..." Jolene mumbled and turned her head away. "After all, he's the one who killed...!"

"I know, Jo. I was there"

"So, that still doesn't explain why ya didn't blast Durangos sorry behind to kingdom Come!" She hissed and faced her brother again. "We had him right there, unarmed an' everythin' but NOBODY shot him! Do ya have ANY idea how pissed off that makes me feel?!" She snorted angrily, but before Jake could answer her she said: "Next time I see that slimy lizard, I'm gonna kill him! I don't care WHO gits in my way, I'll put him down like the monster he is!"

Jake arched an eyebrow at her. "Y'know, usually I'm the one who murders in cold blood..."

"How 'bout a refreshin' change? Let me handle the soul-dragging-down-to-hell business for a while, while ya take a vacation, eh brother Reaper?"

…

Priscilla had never been in the main storage before, but it was without a doubt one of the biggest rooms in the Nest, probably about the same size as the entrance hall! And as soon as she and Rango entered the main storage, she was instantly greeted by the gang. Seeing her alive and well was a great relief to them, even to Hicks. She was also feeling relieved that they were okay, or at least most of them;

Scrange was lying unconscious on a stretcher made from broken boards, sailcloth and ropes. He had a bloody bandage wrapped around his neck and torso, and a giant blackeye covered his entire left eye. As Priss walked up closer to the wounded rat, she could also make out scratches and nasty bites everywhere. And Bentley were nowhere to be seen.

"What's happened to Scrange?" She asked worriedly and turned back to the gang. As she looked closer, even the others seemed to be covered in bruises.

She barely finished the sentence before Fledge began to ramble about something in Spanish and wildly flail his arms about. "Scrange tried talkin' some sense to him, but he just gone n' attacked him..." Was Flitchs shortened down translation.

"Who attacked him?" She looked around, still no sign of Bentley anywhere. "An' where's Bentley? I-is he alright?"

The entire gang averted their eyes and some even began scraping their foot in the ground. "Bentley's down there... In the Basement..." Rango said after a while, pointing with his thumb at a staircase in the corner that led downward.

Priscilla frowned. "What's he doin' there?"

"Probably tryin' to break down the door. Or, that's what he was doin' a while ago..."

"Break down the...? Rango, what's goin' on here?" She staggered back, not knowing what to assume here. Her eyes wandered to the wounded rat, lying on his back on the stretcher and started adding two and two. "No..." She whispered when the horrifying thought of Bentley attacking his best friend appeared in her mind. "No, he can't have...?"

"We can't believe it either, girlie" Rango slowly shook his head. "I guess that today was a bit too much for him, especially with ya runnin' off in the mornin'..."

"I didn't run off!" She protested with a scowl. "I..." She paused and looked away. "I was gonna sneak away and warn Dirt 'bout...!"

"'Bout us?"

"Well, yeah, y'all, Jet, the underground lake... Crap!" At the last thing her eyes widened and she slapped herself on the forehead. "I forgot to tell 'em 'bout that!" The gang gave her puzzled looks, while Rango just nodded to her to go on. "Oh right. Well, I was in the stable when... When the Gajerras sneaked up on me an' they must've knocked me unconscious, b'cause the next thing I remember is wakin' up like this just a few hours ago in a quarry, along with the Jonas, Coral, Thunder Wing, Caleb an' the rest!"

"So, ya don't remember Jet usin' ya to press Bentley on the Valve key?" Hicks looked up from the ground and frowned at her.

She shook her head. "No, but Caleb told me what happened"

"So, ya didn't run away after all?" Rango tilted his head.

"No, I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to...!"

"Oh great..." Rango hopelessly threw his arms out. "Now I feel even worse for sayin' those things to him..."

She glanced over to the staircase again and worriedly bit her lip. "C-can I see him?" The rest of the gang hurried to say "no!" and shake their heads furiously.

"If ya really wanna, then sure!" Rango said, earning shocked and slightly alarmed looks from the others.

"Rango, a word?" Hicks snapped out of the shock and motioned with his head for them to leave the group. Rango nodded and followed the coyote, putting some distance between them and Priscilla, Sam and the porcupine brothers.

"Are ya outta yer mind, partner?" Hick hissed as soon as they got out of earshot. "Ya can't let 'er go down there! Ya saw him yourself, he'll kill 'er as soon as he see 'er!"

Rango shook his head confidently. "Nope, I disagree!" He said and folded his arms across his chest. "I reckon she's the only one he'd never hurt, it can't harm to send 'er down there"

"Can't harm?! Rango, he tried smashin' yer head against the wall, an' listenin' to ya now makes me think he might've succeeded! That THING down there ain't Bentley no more, we CAN'T send 'er down there alone!"

"Sure, we'll have to stand by, just in case, but we can't follow her in! Our presence might make things worse, y'know..."

"Worse? HOW can anythin' git any worse than this?!" But just as he finished that sentence the posse from Dirt, along with Jonas, Caleb, Mongo, Victor, Hog and GoldJack, entered the enormous storage room. "Of course... Wait, how did they git 'ere?" He cocked his head against the bountyhunter and gave him an annoyed look.

"Dunno, I think they followed Priscilla down 'ere, but let's focus on gettin' Bentley back first, 'kay?"

Sheriff Rango looked around in amazement at the main storage and spotted the bountyhunter discussing something with the coyote. The coyotes jaw was clenched shut and the ears were pressed against his neck, whatever they were discussing seemed to upset him. He turned his head to the other direction and saw Priscilla, together with the two porcupines, the bobcat Samuel and the rat. However, the rat looked like he just been thrown off a cliff into a pit full of rabid lions.

Upon seeing each other, the outlaws and the posse warily let their hands hover over their weapons. However, the smugglers just walked over to the outlaws and greeted them with short nods. Jonas slithered away as fast as he could to the Valve when he saw that the heavy metal door was open. It didn't take long before they heard a loud scream.

"HELVETE! INTE MINA SEMLOR OCKSÅ!"

Sheriff Rango gave Priscilla a confused look, but she just shook her head at them and shrugged. He then glanced over at the bountyhunter and the coyote again. "Umm, what are those two talkin' 'bout?"

"I think they're arguin' whether or not to let her see Bentley..." Sam mumbled and threw a nervous glance at Woodrow and Gus. They knew he was the one who had shot them during that sandstorm, and neither of them were especially happy at him for that.

"What? He's batshit again?" Caleb winced when Sam nodded in reply.

"Ya can say that again..."

"Great! This'll be a drag, won't it?"

When Rango and Hicks returned to the group, the bountyhunter immediately held up his palm against the tense posse and sighed. "Listen, I know y'all wanna arrest me an' would more than love to place a bullet between my eyes, but could that wait for a moment? We're kinda in the middle of somethin' here. Priss?" He waved at the young aye-aye. "You're comin' with us" She nodded and brushed past the puzzled gathering of men.

"Wait up!" Sheriff Rango piped up and rushed up to the three of them.

When the other Rango noticed who it was who spoke, he gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes. "Whaddya want, sheriff?" He spat out the last word, like it gave him a bitter taste in his mouth.

The sheriff ignored the tone of the other, taller lizards voice. "Where'she goin'?"

"She's gonna try to bring one of our men back 'to shape, an' drop the accent. It doesn't suit'cha!"

…

Sheriff Rango insisted on coming with them down the stairs, and the bountyhunter was all too tired of arguing to object. When the four of them walked down the stairs, they came out in a room about the size of a normal sized living room, an oval table stood in the middle of the room, and a lantern placed on it spread a dull, gloomy light on it's surroundings. Bloody tracks led from a door at the furthest end, up on the table and then up through the stairs.

"Scrange was bleedin' like a dyin'!" The black clad basilisk explained, but it did nothing to make Priss feel better about the blood. Instead she felt her heart rate pick up and her mouth felt dry.

They walked up to the door and Hicks put his ear against the cool wood. Everything was silent. Too silent. He shook his head at the others. "Can't hear 'im... But for all we know he might be right outside the door!" He flickered his eyes to Priscilla. "Are ya sure 'bout this, Priss?" She nodded. Suddenly, a faint sound was heard from behind the door and Hicks instantly pressed his ear up against it again. "I think he just laughed, it sounded distant though... Have ya got a gun?" He asked Priss again.

"Nah, the Gajerras took 'em..." She answered and shook her head. Without a word, Hicks handed her his revolver. She look at him in puzzlement.

"It's better to have one an' not need it, than to need it an' not have one..." Was the coyotes solemn answer to her silent question. She swallowed nervously and stuck the gun down in the back of her pants and pulled down her shirt over the handle to conceal it. When she was done she nodded to Hicks, who slowly opened the door.

Rango, the bountyhunter, stopped her before she walked in "If he as much as growls at ya, don't hesitate to call fer help. We'll be right outside, an' at any suspicious sound we'll barge in there..."

"An' shoot him?"

The basilisk hesitated. "If necessary, yeah..."

"I need to close the door b'fore he realize it's open, Priss!" Hick said impatiently and glanced inside. He couldn't see anything moving, and neither did he hear anything, but you never knew with Bentley...

Priss nodded and carefully scurried inside before Hicks closed and locked the door, leaving her in the room alone. Or, almost alone...

"W-will she be okay?" Sheriff Rango gulped when he saw the door close behind his deputy.

"We hope so..." The other Rango answered seriously and turned to the sheriff. "Why dont'cha go make yourself useful an' git us some firearms? An' hurry up, we never know when she might need us!"

Rango didn't hesitate, he immediately turned around and bolted up the stairs.

…

Priscilla heard the door lock behind her, and it made her feel even more uneasy as she stood in the dark room. Most of the lanterns and torches that were used to illuminate the Basement were crashed or snuffed out, leaving the room a lot darker than usual. As soon as her eyes got used to the darkness, she started looking around. Crates, boxes and barrels had been strewn across the room, some were broken with it's contents spread all over the place. The sides of the basement was lined with prison cells, all of which doors were open.

She didn't see any signs of Bentley anywhere, so she began to walk forward on the path between the two rows of cells when she suddenly staggered over something. She looked down and almost screamed with horror; on the floor lied the lifeless body of a desert lizard with a huge slash straight across his face and a torn up throat. She backed away from the corpse with staring eyes and took a new look-around. This time she saw the bodies littered across the floor, carcasses she previously mistook for contents from the broken crates.

She began to breathe harder as her heart drummed against her ribcage, the ground was spinning underneath her feet and she felt her stomach turn. The sight of the carnage made her wanna throw up so badly, but she managed to hold it in. Suddenly she heard the shuffle of feet and she turned around in fright, just in time to see a man quickly stagger up from the ground and bolt towards her. With a short shriek, she jumped out of the way and pressed herself against the cool bars of one of the prison cells, but the creature just ran past her for the door.

It wasn't Bentley, it was a mole rat with a freshly chopped off, bleeding tail. He threw himself at the door and desperately banged on it with his blood drenched fists.

"LEMME OUT! I KNOW YOU'RE THERE, RANGO! LEMME OUT, I BEG OF YOU!" He screamed while pounding the door. "PLEASE LEMME OUT!" He was close to sobbing with fear as he turned around and screamed. Priscilla followed his eyes and spotted a familiar figure, slowly walking closer with his eyes locked on the mole rat.

The tall, strong, dog-like creature stalked closer to his terrified prey. Underneath the thick, heavy bangs his eyes were watching the mole rat squirm in terror. The left eye was twitching frequently and despite the darkness, his pupils were no more than small black dots in his frenzied, crimson colored eyes. The bloody muzzle and mouth was tugged up in a sinister, joyless grin, displaying all the sharp fangs in his maws. He was drenched in blood, especially his hands and around his mouth, and a constant, faint giggle originated somewhere back in his throat.

"B-Bentley?" Priscilla stuttered as the hyena walked past her, completely ignoring her.

The mole rat panicked and tried to get Rango to open the door one more time before bolting to the side, trying to run past the hyena. It turned out to be a big mistake, as Bentley threw himself at mole rat and knocked the much smaller rodent to the ground. The mole rat hit his head in the bars on the cell and was momentarily stunned from the hard blow, but he quickly regained his bearings and looked up at the hyena in fear.

"Ya lose, buddy!" Bentley chuckled, sending cold chills down Priscillas spine. He picked up the begging mole rat by the skull, which fit perfectly in the hyenas big paws and flung him across the room, laughing maniacally when the rodent hit the bars right next to Priss with a deafening clang, sending a chain reaction on vibrations through the entire row. She jumped to the side when the rodents skull cracked due to the impact and dropped sprawling to the ground. He was twitching for a while on the ground while blood ran from his nose and ears, before he finally lay still. Dead.

She stifled a scream by pressing her hand against her mouth and stared at Bentley with bewildered and scared eyes. She grew even more scared when she found that he was staring straight back at her. She thought he was going to walk straight up to her, but instead he turned his head away with an amused smirk and walked back to the dark corner where he had emerged from.

"Bentley...?" She gulped and slowly followed him, tip-toeing between the corpses. Some of the dead were still more or less intact, perhaps only missing an arm or a leg, while some where mashed to unrecognizable pulps, or just random dead meat tossed around. She was still fighting the nausea when she passed a barrel that was still standing up straight. The lid was missing and revealed that it contained blood splattered apples.

"Bentley!" She hollered, but the hyena ignored her once again. She picked up the apple with least blood on it and took a deep breath before tossing it at Bentley. It bounced against his head and got him to freeze up before slowly turning to face her. She tried to smile friendly at him, but the fear growing in her chest turned it into a nervous grimace. "H-hi, Bentley..." She staggered back upon meeting his eyes. Who ever this was, it wasn't Bentley. Not her Bentley. Not anymore.

His once so kind, cheering, slightly childish eyes were now the opposite; frightening, frenzied, eyes of a psychopath. The mischievous glint had been replaced by a bloodthirsty fire.

"Ya still here?" He snarled and shook his head. "You're a stubborn one, I'll give ya that!"

"W-what?"

"Usually when I see a mirage, they only lasts for a couple of seconds, but it's been five minutes since ya walked through that door an' you're STILL here!" He turned around entirely and glared at her.

"A m-mirage?" Priss shook her head again. "I ain't no mirage, Bentley! It's me!"

"Oh shut it, will ya?" He made it clear that he didn't believe a word of what she was saying. "It CAN'T be the real Prissy, I ain't fallin' for that, no siree!"

"Oh really?" She put her hands on her hips and tilted her head at him. "An' why not?"

"B'cause..." He paused and looked down at the ground. "B'cause you're dead!" He said and balled his fist. "Dead. I killed ya. I helped them kill ya!"

She lost her composure and took a step back. "Bentley, it's alright! I-I'm okay!" His shoulders began to shake. "C-calm down, okay?"

"Dead..." He repeated slowly. "Dead. Dead! Dead! DEAD!" He spun around and slammed his fist into a crate, crashing through a hole in the wooden box. She jumped in surprise and glanced back at the door far behind her. "You're all dead..." He said with an uncharacteristic cold voice as he slowly pulled out the contents of the crate.

"Wanna know the first thing I ever did in life?" He glanced at the startled aye-aye from the corner of his eye. "The very first thing I ever did, was to murder my own mother." He pulled out an orange from the crate and studied it while he spoke. "I couldn't walk, I couldn't crawl, I couldn't speak, hell I didn't even know what was goin' on 'round me yet! Still, somehow..." His lips curled into an eerie grin as he crushed the orange in his hand, the sweet juice staining everywhere. "Somehow I managed to kill the very one who brought me to life!" He dropped the crushed orange on the ground and retrieved a new one.

"Then, seven years later, it was my fathers turn to die. I was dumb enough to disobey him, an' even managed to convince my sister to follow me to see the Spotted ONES!" By the last word, he threw the orange at the wall. The fruit splattered against the dirty rock wall and bounced to the floor. "Anyhow, my father ended up with a bullet in his brain, b'cause his son was a spoiled lil' brat who couldn't follow the simplest commands!" He pulled out a new, smaller orange. "I have no idea what happened to my sister since she was taken away by the Spotted Creeps, but I bet she's just as dead too, AGAIN thanks to me!" He threw the orange over his shoulder, not at violent as with the previous.

"An' then we had the snake, Bucktoothed Buck, the ONLY guy on the entire ship to show me ANY kindness..." Another orange was retrieved, this one he threw on the ground and stomped on. "Crushed! SPLAT! Flatter than a pancake! When savin' my sorry ass from gettin' crushed by a fallin' mast!" The orange juice exploded from the crushed fruit and ran along the ground, mixing with any blood it happened to pass.

"Next person I lost was Corny..." He held a new orange, weighing it in his hand. "She was my friend, some crazy, spoiled girl who loathed the norm an' declared war against ev'rythin' considered girly. She wanted to be a teacher so badly, she used me as some sort of practice target an' taught me to read, write an' count. Even though she knew we'd both be in deep shit if anyone found out!" He chuckled and gently ran his hand over the smooth texture of the orange, smearing blood and orange juice in his wake. "We even did it once, but that was a mistake we both vowed to ever make again!"

At that, Priss couldn't help but to scowl and fold her arms across her chest. _Thanks for tellin' me that now, ya lil' ass! _She thought bitterly.

"An' when her father found out I was her friend... An' that she educated me on top of all, an' that we even..." He paused and gripped the orange with both hands. "He sent her away, an' next thing I hear 'bout her is that the school she was sent to burned down to the ground during the war. Five survivors, I doubt any of them were her. If it weren't for me, she wouldn't have had to go there!" He gritted his fangs and clenched his eyes shut as he burrowed his claws into the soft fruit and ripped it in two pieces. He threw the two, dripping pieces in separate directions.

He kept pulling out and trashed new oranges for every name on the people he assumed were dead; "Granny Ama, Lottie, The Baxter family, lil' Rosie and her brother Roscoe..." With a sigh, he pulled out the final orange. "An' Prissy... My Prissy..."

Priss felt her heart skip a beat when he said her name, or the nickname he gave her. She had been listening with alarmed fascination to his rant. She didn't know whether to feel horrified or sad, she could just stand there a few feet away from him and cover for the splatting orange juices. But when he mentioned her, she felt tears try to well up in her eyes, but she blinked them away.

"When I saw ya the first time, I thought I had gone double-crazy. As soon as I saw ya, I felt... Weird. Like nothin' I never felt before! Happier than usual, an' perhaps slightly nervous. Ya were always so stern, so serious, an' still I knew that I liked ya the very moment I watched ya an' yer sheriff ride into town with the two wounded lawmen from Diego City. When Rango announced that he wanted ya in the gang, I was so happy. I was literally cheerin' loudly when he told Hicks to fetch ya, to talk to ya. However, maybe I was cheerin' TOO loud, b'cause he sent me away to the saloon. But that didn't matter, b'cause I knew I got to see ya ev'ryday! An' when I realized whatta sourpuss ya really were, I saw it as my duty to make ya laugh! My aunt told me once that girls love it when ya make them laugh, so I did! An' I realized I want'cha to like me the way I liked ya! B'cause I... Well, I love ya!"

While he was talking about her, Priss could notice a change in his behavior; he seemed more relaxed, genuinely happy, almost like his old self. Maybe the real Bentley was still in there somewhere?

"An' that night we spent together was, without doubt, the best night in my life. Sure, we were both a bit fuzzy in the head, but I r'member. It's been five years since I walked out from the Aventine farm, but it wasn't until when ya fell asleep right next to me I felt free for real! I could laugh b'cause I wanted to, not b'cause I had to! The nightmares I had seemed erased from the Earths surface, all thanks to ya! A-an' I promised myself that night, that I'd never, ever stop lovin' ya!" He gritted his teeth even harder, until he thought he felt blood trickle down from his gums. "But when we returned to the Nest, my nightmares grew worse. I started dreamin' 'bout'cha, dreamin' that ya were killed. An' my dreams came true... Ya died. First ya ran away, then they took ya away from me for good! I TRIED to save ya, I WANTED to save ya, but I just..." For a moment, he looked like the real Bentley. Or at least, like the real SAD Bentley. His ears were drooping and the big red eyes were starting to tear up, his shoulders were trembling as he dropped the orange on the ground. But then the sinister snicker returned on his blood covered lips and his eyes flickered to her, just as insane as before. "But that doesn't matter now! They killed you, so I killed them!"

He raised his head and tilted it slightly to the side. Priscilla felt her heart beat so madly she thought it was going to burst out through her chest any second, but she remembered his fathers words and tried to not show how scared she really was, in case it would make everything worse.

"I know what you're doin' here now..." He said and took a step towards her, but she stood her ground. For now. "You're here to haunt me, ain't that it? You're a ghost, a vengeful spirit, roho! Ya ain't gonna get some peace 'til you've had yer revenge, is that it?" He threw his arm out at the massacre around him. "Well, torment no further! I know neither of us can forgive me for what I've done, but I hope THIS is to any consolation for ya!" He laughed, a maniacal, spine chilling sound. "I killed some of the men who killed ya! An' when I've finally got that door outta the way, NOTHIN' can stop me from takin' down the rest! Ooh, I can't WAIT to see Panchos face when I show him his own insides!" The left eye twitched as he took another step towards her. "Just thinkin' 'bout it makes me so... gleeful! So excited! They'll all pay for what they did, dont'cha worry Prissy! I'll personally make sure of that! 101% satisfactory result guaranteed!"

"B-Bentley..." She took a step back as he slowly got closer to her. "S-stop..." She shook her head when it became harder and harder to hide her fear.

"Sure, I'll stop! WHEN THEY'RE DEAD!" He threw his head back and roared with laughter.

Her legs were trembling. Every instinct in her brain told her to turn around and hightail it outta there, but she just couldn't move. She still couldn't believe what had happened to him. As a matter of fact, she had NO idea what had happened to him! All she knew was that she wished for all this to be just another nightmare, from which she'd soon wake up.

"Well, I should get back to the door, shouldn't I?" He abruptly stopped laughing and turned to the half-empty crate of oranges. He lifted it down and began to walk up to the door. Priss quickly moved out of the way and watched as he lifted the crate over his head and flung it at the door. The crate loudly crashed into the door and splintered, oranges bounced out everywhere. "Dang it... Maybe I'll have to throw somethin' else..." Bentley said pondering and looked around. His eyes fell on the carcass of a rather large jackrabbit with overdimensioned drooping ears and his lip curled up in a grin once again. "Of course! Prissy, you're still here right? Why dont'cha meet an old friend of mine..." He said as he walked up to the jackrabbit and grabbed the ears, lifting him up to a sitting position. "Prissy, this is Gringo. Gringo, meet Prissy! Oh wait, ya already met her when ya bastards murdered her, didnt'cha?!" He growled and picked up the limp jackrabbit, staggering slightly due to the jackrabbits weight, as he tried to get closer to the door.

"Bentley, no! Stop it!" She yelled at him, but he didn't listen. He did the same to Gringo as he did to the crate: hoisting him up and tossed him at the door. This time the door began to bend inwards upon the impact of the jackrabbits corpse, muffled curses could be heard from Hicks on the other side when the door hit his ear and forced him to step back.

"Oh c'mon, what do they make these doors of?! Titanium?!" Bentley growled in disappointment and began to look around for more things, or bodies, to throw.

"W-what...? What're ya doin'?!" Priscilla sobbed in panic as Bentley found his next victim; a skink lizard with the bottom half of his body missing.

"What does it look like? I'm tryin' to break down the door!" He snorted as he bent down to pick up the small lizard. "I know I COULD ram the door myself, but I actually tried that b'fore an' now my shoulders hurt like a bitch! By the way Priss, meet Jones!" He picked up the skink by the neck and jumped in surprise as the organs fell out through the hole where the rest of his body once was. "Hah! Look, Prissy! Jonesys innards b'came his outards!" The mental hyena laughed, but his 'dead' girlfriend didn't.

"Bentley, please! I'm serious, listen to me...!"

Bentley snorted at her. "Why so serious?" He said and turned his attention back to the skink. A creepy giggle left his lips as he came up something he thought would be hilarious; he took his free, right hand and shoved it inside the lizards half-empty carcass. His hand squirmed his way up to the lizards mouth and after some fidgeting around, he managed to get Jones mouth to open and close as his hand did.

Bentley laughed at his macabre hand-puppet and turned back to Priscilla. "Howdy there, kids! This is the Uncle Bentley an' Mr Jones' show!" He said with a hysterically distorted voice as the lizards mouth was opening and closing, pretending to be a ventriloquist even though he wasn't very good at it.

Priss felt the color drain from her face and her stomach churned. She wanted to throw up at the mental Bentleys bizarre sense of humor, this couldn't be real... "Y-you're... insane!" She sobbed and took a step back to the wall.

Bentley snorted again. "No I'm not! I ain't crazy, I'm a ventriloquist!"

"What's the difference, really?" He made the skink say. "Both constantly talk to themselves an' laughs at their own jokes, don't they?"

"Ah, ya make a good point there, my good fellow!" The hyena smirked at his gory puppet. "Ya see, an insane person doesn't really talk to themselves; they talk to figments of their imaginations an' invisible people, they can't decide whom they're talkin' to! A ventriloquist however, creates an alternate personality an' uses it to communicate to the public with. The puppet is a dead thing, quite literally in this case, but ev'ryone knows it exists! An' it doesn't come to life until the ventriloquist say so! The ventriloquist is in full power of the puppet, while the mentally unstable fella can't control his imaginary friends!" To prove his point of the ventriloquist being in control of the puppet, he used the skinks arm to hit himself in the head. "See, I can even make ya hit yourself, however I can't get HER to disappear, which might mean that I perhaps could be a bit looney after all..."

"A lil' bit?! Buddy, ya think you're a ventriloquist havin' a discussion 'bout crazies with a dead guy, you're absolutely loco, amigo!" The skink snorted with Bentleys distorted voice. "Not to mention that ya SUCK as a ventriloquist!"

"What?! No I don't!"

"Yes you do, ev'ryone can TOTALLY see yer lips movin'!"

"Liar! If ya weren't already dead I'd kill ya to death!"

"No, ya can't do that! That be a form of suicide, wouldn't it?"

"Hmm, maybe ya got a point there, Jonesy..."

"STOP IT!" Priss screamed, not even trying to hide the tears rolling down her cheek. She's had enough. She wanted Bentley back, and she wanted him back now! "Bentley, STOP IT! Just... STOP!" She sobbed and leaned her head in her hands. "Stop..."

"Alright, alright! I heard'cha!" Bentley sighed and lifted the skink off his hand with a sickening _schlurp_. In his hand he held a jiggly organ about the size of his fist. "I know my jokes can be a a bit too much sometimes..." He said chuckled before lifting the hand with the unidentifiable organ. "... But you'll just have to learn to STOMACH them!" He laughed and threw the organ at her, she barely managed to jump out of the way in time.

She was looking at him with the fear clearly reflected in her eyes, her legs trembling. She didn't know if it actually WAS a stomach Bentley had thrown at her, but she really couldn't care either. All she could do was staring at him laughing his ass off while throwing the lizard at the door too. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and wiped the tears away. She tried to regain the illusion of being calm again, but she just had to open her eyes and look at him to feel her knees grow weak and her heart race.

"Bentley..." She said and had to concentrate hard to keep herself from stuttering or faltering on the words. "Listen to me Bentley, it's me. I'm me, the REAL me! I didn't mean to disappear like that, I was just gonna leave for a couple of hours, then I'd come back! I told ya I'd couldn't leave ya, y'know."

"Oh please, don't start again!" Bentley snarled at her. "Now you're just gettin' annoyin'!"

She ignored him. "I-I can't r'member ev'rythin' that happened, but I remembered that it was the Gajerras who kidnapped me, but I can't recall anythin' after that. All I know is that I woke up a few hours ago, saved by Caleb an' Mongo..."

"Ugh, I'm really startin' to hate those two..."

"When they told me ev'rythin' that happened, I just b'came so worried 'bout'cha!" She felt her throat tighten up and it became harder to speak. "I thought they hurt ya, or worse: killed ya! But now I see you're even worse than that!"

"What'cha talkin' 'bout? I'm healthy as a horse!"

"No, you're not! This..." She paused and held back the tears. "This ain't you! This ain't the real you!" She subconsciously began to walk up to him as she spoke. "Where is he? Where the guy who taught me that life's a game an' ya better have fun while playin' it?"

"S-shut up, ghost!"

"Where's the guy who claims to be a pacifist, yet loves to infuriate ev'ryone he meets just to see what would happen, an' builds weapons of mass destruction when he's locked alone inside a workshop?"

"Just go away already!"

"Why did he have to go? The guy who pulls practical jokes on people when he's bored, an' has the most contagious laughter I've ever heard..." She paused, coming to a stop just a few inches away from him. "Where's the guy I fell in love with?"

"ENOUGH!" He screamed and took a threatening step forward. She backed away again and in a flash she drew the revolver at him. His eyes dilated when they met with the pitch black muzzle of the barrel, but then he snickered and flickered his frenzied eyes to meet hers. "Go ahead, pull the trigger. Shoot me with one of yer non-existin' bullets an' watch me writhe on the floor, LAUGHIN'!"

She sobbed as she took another step back. Her hand holding the revolver was shaking uncontrollably, and she slowly lowered the weapon from his face. This was the first time she's ever held a gun against an outlaw threatening her, and she just couldn't find the strength to pull the trigger. Bentley sighed and shook his head.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Tragic, Prissy. Tragic..."

…

The muffled shouts from the Basement got them all tensed up. Since the crazed hyena inside tried to crash the door down again, more people had joined them in the guard room: Caleb, the porcupines, Wounded Bird, Hog, GoldJack and Woodrow had all poked their heads down there at the noise.

"How do we know if she needs help in there?" Caleb said and frowned at the coyote blocking the door.

"We told her to call for help if he as much as growls at her, an' we ensured her that we'd burst in at the slightest suspicious sound..." The bountyhunter replied without looking at the aye-aye.

"Well, it sounds to me like he's doin' a LOT more than growling at her!" Caleb continued. "An' I reckon it ALL sounds very fuckin' suspicious!"

"Why're ya suddenly so worried 'bout the 'tramp'?"

"B'cause this will be the fourth time I'll have to save her sorry ass, and it's gettin' mildly tedious by now! I REALLY don't wanna have to barge in there an' find B tryin' to maul 'er, I can only stand up for a person for so many times, y'know!"

They heard Bentley shout something again, and sheriff Rango threw a nervous glance at the door. "M-maybe we should, y'know, check what's happening in there...?"

The other Rango threw his a dark look. "Sure, go ahead!" He said, but as the sheriff reached for the door, Rango continued: "Stroll in there an' ya might doom yer deputy to an early death!"

Sheriff Rango gulped and backed away from the coyote and the slightly bent door. "W-what should we do then?"

"We wait... That's all we can do!"

…

"I'm THIS close to swat ya like a fly, but I know it wouldn't do me any good since you're just a GHOST! YOU'RE NOT REALLY THERE! YOU'RE DEAD!" Bentley yelled at her face.

"No! I-it IS me, Bentley! WHY WON'T YA JUST LISTEN TO ME?!" She retaliated, the fear was getting challenged by another equally strong feeling: anger. WHY did he have to be so damn stubborn all the time?! WHY couldn't he just reach his hand out and touch her, and he'll see for himself just how much of a ghost she really is! His denial was REALLY starting to get on her nerves!

She was forced to take a step back as he lifted his fist, like he was going to punch her. But instead he roared and spun around, slamming the fist on a wine-barrel instead, cracking the lid and plunging his fist into the dark red liquid inside. "WHY won't ya just LEAVE ME ALONE?!" He snarled as he turned around to her again.

"I ain't leavin' 'til I've got MY Bentley back!"

"ARGH! Why are ya so stubborn?!"

"YOU are the one bein' stubborn, Bentley!"

"Of course I am! I'm an hyena, whaddya expect?!"

"I expect YOU to frickin' get a hold of yourself an' see what the hell it is you've been doin'!"

"I've avenged you!"

"You've HURT me!"

He stopped and looked at her with a new expression on his face: confusion. "What?"

"Seein' ya like this has been one of the most painful an' horrifyin' things I've experienced..." Her voice sounded thick and sad thanks to the lump in her throat, trying to hold back the sobs. "This isn't you, Bentley! My Bentley would NEVER do somethin' like this!" She slowly moved her free hand up to his face.

He growled at her, pressing his ears back against his neck and bared his fangs. "Back off!" He snarled.

"No, not 'til I've made ya see I'm real!"

"BACK OFF!" With a roar he threw his fist out, hitting her on the side of her head.

Black stars danced in front of her eyes as she was sent crashing to the floor, but the sharp pain that jolted throughout her entire body when she landed on her damaged shoulder made her snap out of her half-conscious state. Her cry of pain as she crashed her shoulder on the ground echoed throughout the basement, making the men outside the door perk up.

"That's our cue!" Rango the bountyhunter said and drew his gun. "Hicks?! What're ya waitin' for! Just open the bloody door, already!"

"I can't!" The coyote snarled and threw his entire weight at the headstrong door. "It's jammed!" He cursed when the realization hit him. Whatever Bentley had been throwing, must have managed to wedge the door.

"Caleb?!" Rango snapped his head to the aye-aye, but he was already on his way up through the stairs.

"I know, I know! I'll get the big guy!" The teen hollered from the stairs. But when he leaped out into the main storage, he looked around in panic. He saw Doc, tending to the wounded Scrange with Gus scouting the area. Jonas was in the Valve, searching frantically for a new hat, but no Mongo anywhere. "For fuck sake, Mongo! Not now!" He shouted and bolted out to search for the giant.

Meanwhile, Bentley was staring down at the wincing aye-aye on the ground. She was clutching her shoulder and trembled in pain while blood seeped through the bandage. The corner of his mouth was tugged up in a grin. "Soo..." He mused, earning a frightened look from her. "You're that kind of roho ya can touch, eh? Does that mean I can 'help' ya disappear too?"

She shook her head and sobbed. "No... Bentley, no!" She tried to back away, but the sudden pain reawakening in her shoulder held her grounded.

"If I kill ya now, will ya promise to leave me alone?" He tilted his head in that eerie way again, the bloodthirst returned to his eyes. She didn't answer, just clenched her eyes shut and cursed at her shot shoulder. "I'll take that as a yes!"

With slow, dragging steps he began to make his way to the curled up woman, but suddenly he felt himself stepping on something and looked down. On the ground lied a dirty voodoo-doll. One of it's button eyes were missing and the gray yarn on it's head looked old and tangled.

_Granny Ama... _He stared on it for a while before slowly bending down and picking it up, just as Priss opened her eyes and looked at him. She saw the doll and was taken by surprise, she must've had it in her pocket. But why didn't the Gajerras take it along with everything else?

"Where did ya get this?" Bentley asked without taking his eyes off the little doll.

"Y-ya gave it t-to me..." Priss sobbed and managed to push herself up on her knees. Without the pressure on her shoulder, the pain eased up a bit. "R-r'member?"

He shook his head. "N-no... I gave it to HER! T-the REAL Prissy!" He looked back at her, this time the mental, murderous look was replaced by a look of fear and confusion. "Y-you're not her! WHERE did ya get it?!"

"Y-ya gave it to me, a-after I gave ya the scarf, a-an' ya told me I c-could keep it..." She paused, trying to focus on anything else but the pain. "A-a good luck charm..."

Bentley dropped the doll and it landed on the ground with a soft _thud_. "N-no..." He backed away. "Y-you're dead! I-I saw you! P-Pancho shot ya!"

"But he didn't kill me..." She forced her eyes to meet his. "Look at me, it IS me!"

"L-LIAR!" He screamed, sounding more scared than angry. "S-she lyin'!" He clamped his hands on the sides of his head and began to swing back and forth. "NO! S-she's just a ghost! She ain't real! She CAN'T be real, b'cause she's DEAD! They took her away!"

"An' I came back!" She slowly got up on her feet, staggering when the pain coursed through her once again. She hunched over and put her hand on her shoulder. "I-I came back, to you!"

"NO!" He answered without looking up. "Ya left me alone! All alone! As ALWAYS!"

"You've NEVER been alone, Bentley!" He slowly looked up at her with mixed emotions. "Y-yer father... I've met him, a-an' he told me that he's always been watchin' over ya! He's been there, even if ya couldn't see him. He's ALWAYS been there with ya!"

"Y-you're lyin'..." He shook his head. "Ya can't meet him! He's dead! Just like you!"

"I'm alive, Bentley. An' ya know...!" She was going to walk over to him, but the pain in her shoulder forced her to stop. She cursed and clutched at her bleeding shoulder. _Could really use some of that disgusting tea Thunder Wing gave me..._

Bentley was trembling, his mind cluttered with thoughts. He staggered to the side and tripped over something on the ground. He fell to the ground and landed on his stomach, next to whatever it was he tripped over. Breathing heavy, he heaved himself up on his elbows and looked over at the big, bulky object; it was the corpse of Burt. The shrews ears had been ripped off, he had a big, gaping hole in his stomach and his own hand was sticking out from his wide opened mouth. He stared with dead, unseeing eyes at Bentley, the milky white eye with the scar was slightly more opened than the normal one. Blood was splattered all over the shrews face, and the sight of the mutilated corpse made Bentleys entire mind come to a stop. He started screaming in fear and quickly got up on his knees, but he shortly discovered that his surroundings wasn't any better. Wherever he looked, he saw dead people. Mauled carcasses were strewn around the room, blood stained the cells, the walls, the crates and barrels, the floor and roof.

Blood.

Blood and death everywhere.

And in the middle of it all, stood Priss. Blood was running from her shoulder, where her arm was in a dirty sling. She was quivering in pain as she fought back the tears. Bentley felt the world rock underneath his feet, and his stomach turn in uproar. He couldn't take it anymore and staggered over to a barrel that was still standing and leaned against it. He felt nausea wash over him like a wave, and one last look at the carnage made him lean over the barrel and vomit. Despite just throwing up, he could still feel the taste of blood in his mouth. The retching returned when he discovered that he too was entirely covered in blood. The thick, red liquid was everywhere he saw.

He walked away from the barrel and slumped down against the bars of a cell and winced when he discovered the mole rat with the cracked skull right next to him. With a pained groan he buried his face in his dirty, bloody palms, trying to push the tears back. Suddenly he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder and he jerked in surprise. He looked up and saw Priscilla, kneeling down beside him.

"Bentley?" She said worriedly, moving her hand to his other shoulder.

"I-is that ya, Prissy?" He bit his lip and threw a short glance at her hand. He could feel her, but that didn't necessarily mean that she was there.

"That's what I've told ya all this time, it IS me!" She managed to pull of a half-assed smile and leaned her head against his. She was getting bloodstains all over her, but she didn't care. He was back, he was FINALLY back! Or, mostly...

He didn't move, he just stared blankly at his surroundings. "I did this..." He mumbled and shifted his eyes up to her. "I did all this, didn't I?"

She sighed and withdrew from him. "No, ya didn't."

"Yes I did!" He averted his eyes again, staring down at the ground. "I'm a murderer!" He sobbed.

"No, ya ain't! YOU didn't murder them! It was..." She hesitated. "It was somethin' else..."

He closed his eyes and leaned back against the cool metal bars. "No, it was all me... An' I wanted to kill ya too..." When she didn't answer him, he looked back up at her. "I know it ain't 'nuff to cover for what I've done, an' tried to do, but I'm sorry, Prissy... I'm really sorry!" Tears were beginning to well up in his eyes, so he cursed and wiped them away. "Damn it..."

"It's alright, it wasn't yer fault, y'know!" She shook her head. "Ya really shouldn't blame yourself for everythin'! Just b'cause bad things happen to the people 'round ya doesn't mean it's yer fault! Take Corny for instance; it was her father who sent her away...!"

"Thanks to me..."

"Well, yeah, but he could've let her stay too! Ya didn't want her to leave, right?" He slowly shook his head. "See? Ya didn't decide to send her away, her father did! IF somethin' happened to her, it's HIS fault, it ain't yers!" He didn't answer to that. "Look, as I said; I met yer dad, an' he told me that yer sister..."

Suddenly his ears perked up slightly and he tilted his head at her. "Ya really met him?"

She nodded. "Tall fella, brownish yellow fur, dark spots and grayish mane? He had a strand of hair hangin' like a pendulum from his temple, an' he was constantly chucklin'... It grew kinda annoyin' after a while!"

"Yeah..." Bentley smiled faintly and looked away. "That sounds like him alright..."

"Anyway, he didn't say anythin' 'bout yer sister bein' dead either... I think she's alive, Bentley! She's had it pretty rough, an' probably lost her mind too, but she's alive!"

He looked back up. "Y-ya think so?"

Priss nodded. "An' I almost forgot, yer dad asked me to tell ya 'hi'! Oh, an' there was somethin' more..." She scrunched up her face in concentration as she tried to recall those foreign words. "I think it was nakupenda... Nakupenda wanango or somethin'"

He tensed up and stared at her. "N-nakupenda mwanangu?"

"Yeah, that's it!"

He was silent for a while, before his shoulders began to tremble. He didn't answer when she asked him what was wrong, instead he hung his head even lower and seemed to struggle to breathe.

She frowned in concern and sat down in front of him, trying to reach eyecontact. "Bentley? What does it mean?"

"I-it means..." He sobbed and leaned forward, resting his head on her undamaged shoulder. "It means... I-I love you, m-my son..." He started sobbing, and when Priss placed her left, free arm around his neck and hugged him, he responded by throwing both his arms around her and pull her close. Almost squeezing her like a snake while burying his face in her shoulder.

"Nakupenda pia, baba..." He sobbed before he began to cry a river into her shirt. Not sobbing quietly like he used to, but wailing loudly. She couldn't help but to feel the tears burn behind her eyelids as well when she nestled her fingers in his mane and leaned her head against his.

_Maybe I should've delivered that message AFTER he's calmed down..._ She thought and felt her own tears trickle down her, by now blood-smeared, cheek.

Suddenly the door to the basement was barged open by a giant mountain lion, the crates and bodies were roughly pushed to the side and what seemed like a minor army of men swarmed in with their weapons ready. They all stopped dead in their tracks as they were met by the ghastly scene, and sheriff Rango fainted, slowly dropped in a pile on the floor.

"What in tarnation...?" Woodrow growled and took a step back.

"Oh, I think it turned out to be a false alarm..." Caleb said and poked his head up behind the group of men and pointed at the hugging pair.

Priss turned her head to the gang and angrily narrowed her eyes. She untangled her hand from around his neck and waved it in a shooing motion at the men. Rango, the Rango who was still standing, turned around and motioned for the men to go back into the guard room. His eyes went down the chameleon sheriff who fainted, he was giggling and mumbling in his sleep. The other Rango rolled his eyes and first poked with his toe on the chameleon, before kicking him in the shin.

Sheriff Rango woke up with a yelp. "The Germans are comin'!" When the other Rango hushed angrily at him, he jumped in surprise. "AHH! What're you doing he...?" The basilisk pointed angrily at Bentley and Priscilla, sheriff Rango followed his finger and saw them. "Oh, I see..."

When they were back in the guard room with the rest, leaving the two for themselves for a bit longer in the Basement, Rango turned with a relieved sigh to others.

"GOOD, now I can check the mental hyena off my list too! Whats next?" He let his eyes travel over the men from Dirt. "Oh, that's right!" As on a cue, all weapons were immediately drawn and the two sides aimed at each other. "Now, can ya hillbillies please tell me what you're doin' here, instead of defendin' yer beloved town 'gainst an army of ex-smugglers, two walkin' morality issues an' a greedy raccoon with megalomania?"

**Holy shit, this chapter will definitely go down in history or something! DAMN, Bentleys freak-out turned out worse than I intended o_o! Not sure what I myself think of this story though, all I know is that I didn't mean for it to get so bloody, it just... happened :(**

**And I'm really, really, really, REALLY, sorry to hear that your lunch ended up on the floor, and that your coming weeks will be littered with nightmares about crazy hyenas :(... To be honest, I think I failed when I said I wasn't going to let the creepiness and goriness go overboard... Failed hard!**

**My excuse? Repo! The Genetic Opera... That's where the thing with the sock-puppet comes from... But look at the bright side: this is the ONLY time I'll EVER write about someone using a dead guy as a sock-puppet!**

**EEEUWWWGGH!**

**Anyway, I'll take this opportunity to thank all and everyone of you who reads this fic, and ESPECIALLY to those of you who also writes reviews! Like StoneColdAphrodite, Bat13SJx, Canzet Yote. Your reviews are literally what keeps me going with this, and it might take some time before I get the time to check the reviews, but you guys ALWAYS manage to put a grin on my face when I read them :)! You guys are awesome beyond words!**

**Now, I've probably stretched the M-rating to the limit here... I'll go and see if Niko wants to share some of her beloved vodka...**

**See y'all next chapter! If I haven't scared everyone away with all the gore ;_;... Hyenas aren't funny when they snap...**

**Sorry...**

**Oh, and if anyone wanna know: this chapter breaks an amazing SWG record by being whopping 14 pages long! Fun fact;)**

**As usual, I blame google translate for any incorrect Swahili...**

**... I still can't believe I actually wrote this TT_TT...  
**


	51. Pancakes

**Once again, I apologize for the previous chapter ;_;... Yup, I definitely got a bit too excited with the gore, didn't I? UWAGH! BUT, now we're done with the gore, however we've still got some of the sappiness, mushiness, paranoia and the fluff left... Oh so much fluff o_o"...**

**Anyway enjoy ^^!**

***** Chapter Fifty-one : Pancakes *****

The five riders were quarreling among themselves as they reached the hill.

"Hell, I bet that's just a trick to break us up! After we've been to the god damn town, n' without findin' nothin', we'll return to the quarry just to find that the others have been massacred by that sneaky two-faced deputy, that loudmouthed brat an' their outlaw friends!" Thomas said and turned to McKenzie. "An' ya know what I'll say then?" McKenzie rolled his eyes. "I'll say this: AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!"

The cockroach stopped laughing when Elton told him to shut up. "IF there's someone after the town, we wouldn't wanna draw his attention, now would we?" Tarrant filled in for his brother.

"Hey! All I'm sayin' is that if that big freak, frickin' Sasquatch or whatever he was, killed 'em off while they tricked us away, don't blame me!"

"The only thing we'll blame ya for is if ya reveal our location to the enemy!" McKenzie snarled without looking at the roach and flattened the enormous ears on his head.

"What if there is no enemy, Mac? What's if it's just a big hoax? Nothin' but a fib told by the deputy to send us away?!"

"No, it wasn't a fib..." Louie said. He had come to a halt on top of the hill and stared blankly at the town far away on the horizon. The rest of the gang from Dry Creek rode up side by side with the sheriff and they all gawked at the scene in front of them;

The sky was a deep, blue color, and behind the outlines of the town there was still a pink line left from the sunset. But they didn't need any sunlight to see the destruction: a massive crack in the earth split the main street in two halves, one street was completely ruined and ankle deep water covered the entire town.

The five men gawked at the sight, before Louie finally snapped back and turned his roadrunner around. "C'mon, we gotta head down an' see how the townspeople's managed! An' be quiet Thomas!"

For once, Thomas had nothing to say. He just nodded mutely and lingered for a while, before he too rode down the hill. The small gang quietly making their way to the town.

…

Priscilla dropped the soiled clothes in the empty wooden barrel with a disgusted grimace. Maybe if they could be thoroughly washed they could've been saved, but washing clothes wasn't high on anyones priority list. Especially not on any full grown ruffian outlaws list. They barely even bathed as it was. Which had been proven when the bathtub Jonas provided them was dusty and spiders about the size of their fists had strung their web all over it. She sighed and leaned back against the barrel. Getting Bentley into the tub had been a challenge.

Ever since they both walked up the stairs from the Basement he had been quiet and moping, clinging on to her like a barnacle. Hearing about how close he had been to kill Scrange didn't make everything that much better either. He rarely spoke, only mumbling a few words every now and then, and he never let Priss out of his sight. Sure, she could understand if he was worried and slightly paranoid, consider everything that's happened, but after a while she had to push him away and draw a line; she COULD go to the bathroom on her own.

When she tried to convince him to change out of those bloody clothes, he had first looked at her blankly and then turned to the bath with a suspicious frown. He refused to go into the bath for almost half an hour, then she had enough. She grabbed him by the front of his shirt, dragged him up to the tub and threatened to drag him off to the aquifer and push him into the murky, cold, possibly monster infested water if he didn't get his sorry ass in the tub before she came back. It must have worked, because when she left to look for some new clothes, he had already begun to unbutton his shirt.

She had to search for a while before she actually managed to get her hands on clothes which would fit the tall, heavy hyena, the only problem was that the only ones who could even match his size was the Gajerras. She whistled innocently when she strolled out of their room with a pair of black pants and a tan longsleeve shirt, hoping that nobody, especially not Bentley, would notice it was theirs.

When she returned to the room where Bentley and her had been assigned to, she found him in the tub, his nose and eyes barely visible over the water, which already had changed into a deep red from all the blood. He spotted her coming closer and slightly raised his head up from the water, enough to speak without getting the bloody water in his mouth.

"Prissy, it hurts..." He said quietly, earning a puzzled look from the aye-aye. "I think I've been shot..."

Priscilla nodded and dropped the new clothes on a chair. "Put these on, I'll take a look at it when I come back!"

With that she took his old clothes and threw them away in the empty barrel, possibly to get cleaned one day. She took a hasty glance at herself, she could also use some new clothes, as the ones she wore had bloodstains and were starting to get torn. But that could wait.

She took a detour to the western communion room, where the others had gathered instead of in the main storage. They had moved the tables into one big, and the two sides were sitting across each other, glaring as if they could make the opponents vaporize. They had agreed on some form of temporary truce, mostly thanks to the posse being outnumbered by the outlaws and smugglers, despite the two rattlesnakes, and thanks to Rango the bountyhunter, who really couldn't deal with any more fussing about right now. Least of all a full blown clash between the two sides.

Jonas wore a hat, identical to the one that got destroyed. "It is good to hav an extra!" He snickered and poked the hat with the tip of his tail when he met the gangs questioning faces.

Coral and Thunder Wing had returned shortly after Bentley went back from being a homicidal maniac, although Thunder Wing left shortly again, to find and inform the other half of the posse about their new location. Scrange was still unconscious, and his stretcher had been placed near the stove, where Fledge and Flitch was cooking something in a massive skillet. Loudly arguing in Spanish while they did so.

Doc, the two Rangos and Wounded Birds heads turned when Priscilla walked into the room. "How's he doin'?" The bountyhunter asked, earning a shrug from Priss.

"At least he ain't violent no more, but it'll take some time b'fore he's back to normal again" She answered seriously. "If he ever get's back, that is..." She added quietly. She hated the think of that, but the longer she thought about it, the more she realized how hard it was going to be for him to recover from something like that. He was still traumatized over the massacre, and seeing Scrange like that because of him. Not to mention that if even a single drop of blood could make him sick, it was hard to imagine what he must felt when he realized he was covered in it.

"Anyway Hog, I need some alcohol an'...!"

Caleb chortled out a laugh from the corner where him and Mongo stood. "He's THAT much of a drag, huh?"

Priss rolled her eyes. "No, but I think he might be hurt so I need some alcohol and bandages..." Just she said that, the big skillet was put down on the table, containing some kind of unidentifiable stew.

But the outlaws were way too hungry to complain about the fishy slab and literally threw themselves over the food, chucking up greedy masses on their plates. Woodrow frowned at the questionable food.

"How can we know it ain't poisoned?" Gus growled in suspicion.

"Well, if you see us startin' to twitch and flop around on the ground, then Fledge and Flitch probably poisoned us all like the crazy Mexicans they are!" Caleb rolled his eyes and handed an amount of slop enough to feed an artillery to Mongo, who hungrily dug in with his entire face into the food. Fledge spat out his food, asked his brother something and started laughing at his answer.

"I reckon I've got some of that cheap stuff still underneath the counter. It's hardly even drinkable, but ya might have some use for it!" Hog said with a nod. "However, we're all out of bandages, sorry!"

"Ts'alright, I'll just have to improvise somethin', then!"

She grabbed a plate with stew before she left and passed Bentleys room to drop off the plate before she continued to the opposite communion room. He had pulled on the black pants and was sitting slouched over on the chair and held the shirt in his hands.

"This is the Gajerras, ain't it?" He asked without looking up when she left the plate on the nearby table.

She paused for a moment. "Y-yeah, it is. But I was thinking since y'all are 'bout the same size n'all...!" She discontinued and sighed when he not as much as looked at the plate she put down next to him. "Hey, eat this, alright? I'll be right back, then I'll have a look at'cha, okay?" She couldn't help herself but to give him a hasty hug before she left. He didn't even as much as react.

She left and dashed to the other com. room. She dove in behind the bar desk and rummaged through the stock. She found an unopened bottle of some of the extra strong cactus juice and decided that it had to do. On the way back she detoured into an empty room and snatched a white sheet to shred and use as bandage. It was tricky having to carry everything with one hand so she tried using her other to carry the sheet. It worked as long as she didn't move her shoulder. She was lucky that the bullet had gone straight through, but that did nothing to ease the excruciating pain she felt whenever she bumped into something, or moved it too much.

Bentley was still sitting hunched over on the chair, staring down at his hands. He hadn't even as much as looked at the food. Priss sighed again as she withdrew a stool to sit on while she tended to his wounds. "Now, where does it hurt?" Without a word, he extended his arm and she saw blood dripping from two holes in his arm and one in his side. "Oh boy, this'll need some stitchin'..."

She vacated the room once again to search for a knife, sewing equipment and a candle. The two holes in his arm seemed relatively harmless, as the bullets had just passed clean through without even getting close to the bone. As she cleaned out the wounds with the strong alcohol, he didn't even as much as flinch. He just sat hunched over on the chair, holding his arm out and stared blankly at the floor. Not uttering a single word.

"Bentley?" Priss couldn't help but to ask, he didn't even as much as flick his ear at her. "What's wrong?" More silence. "Bentley, how are ya feelin'?"

"Oh, y'know..." He finally said. "Considerin' I've just committed the worst massacre in history, almost killed my best friend an' tried to murder you outta all people in cold blood, definitely placin' me in the 'Top Ten Sickest Psychopaths' list, other than that I'm just peachy..."

Priss frowned as she held the needle over the candle. "Well, glad to hear you're not entirely traumatized!" He didn't answer. His silence made her feel even more uncomfortable. "Can't ya at least say somethin'? You're creepin' me out!"

"Like what?"

"I dunno, why dont'cha crack another one of yer lame jokes? We could both use a good laugh right now!"

"What is there to laugh 'bout, really? Do I have to remind ya that I almost killed ya t'day?"

"C'mon now, don't be like that!" She scoffed as she began to stitch his bullet-wounds together. He jerked his hand slightly and hissed in pain, but other than that he didn't move a muscle while she stitched him up. She got fed up with the gloomy silence once again and tried to ease up the mood a bit. "I know, how 'bout this one; why did the chicken cross the road?"

"To get his beak broken off an' shoved into his eyeball... "

She flinched. _So THAT'S what happened to Bob... Lovely... _"Ookay, maybe not..." She mumbled and wrapped strings of the shredded sheet around his arm, wrapping up the wounds. She cut of the thread with the knife before taking on his other wound. This hole was still bleeding and seemed deeper. It had probably begun bleeding again since he bathed, seeing as he would've bled to death by now if it hasn't. "Umm... Bentley..." She said and fumbled for the knife. "I think the bullet's still in there... I'm afraid I'll have to dig it out"

He didn't even open his mouth as he leaned over the table and buried his face in his arms. Priscilla winced. Neither of them would enjoy this, she realized as she held the knife over the candle, making sure it was somewhat sterile for the 'operation'.

After a while of digging around she eventually found the bullet. She made a gagging sound as she dropped the little hunk of lid on the table and started to clean the bleeding wound. Bentley was still trembling after the painful 'excavation', but he had managed to sit still throughout it all. She couldn't help but to silently admire him for that, since that would've been more than she'd have done in this case.

While she rubbed alcohol around the wounded area with a piece of the sheet, she threw a hasty glance at the scars on his back. It made her mad every time she saw them. She had heard horror stories about the cruelty some plantation owners showed their slaves, but she would never have thought anyone could so something like this another living being without remorse! For a whip to leave scars like these, they must first have left very deep and nasty wounds. She started to feel sick when she imagined the pain he must have felt from the lashes, which seemed to have been many as he barely had any fur left!

He turned his head and looked at her over his shoulder. "Prissy?" She woke up from her thoughts and noticed that she had stopped cleaning the wound and instead traced her fingertips along his ruined back with tears in her eyes.

"Oh, sorry! I-I just..." She quickly withdrew her hand and started looking for the needle. _Great, I swear, if I've lost it I'll..._ She found it and sighed with relief. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand did the same to the needle as with the knife before. They were both silent as she stitched the wound in his side up as well and wrapped him up with the last of the ripped sheets.

"See? Good as new!" She chuckled and glanced at the food. He still hadn't touched it, and it had grown cold by now. "Ya ain't eatin'?" She tilted her head at him in puzzlement.

He glanced at the plate hastily before turning his eyes back to the tables surface. "Ain't hungry..."

"But Bentley, you're ALWAYS hungry?"

"No, not t'day..."

"But ya ain't eatin' nothin' since yesterday!" She picked at the plate, she wasn't going to stop nagging until he finally ate something. "Cant'cha at least PRETEND to eat it?"

"I told'cha, I ain't hungry!"

She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Not even a bite?"

"God DAMN it, Priscilla! I told'cha; I AIN'T hungry!" He slammed his fist in the table and glared at her. But when he saw the startled look in her eyes, he immediately regretted his outburst. He hung his head only a few inches off the table. "I-I'm sorry, Prissy... I didn't meant to yell... I..." He let out an exasperated sigh. "I'm sorry..."

She stared at him in shock for a few heartbeats, before she shook her head with a heavy sigh. "It's alright!" Priss said and put a hand on his shoulder as she lifted the plate of the table. "I-I'll be right back..." She said walked out of the room, he didn't even look up from the table.

She closed the door behind her and leaned against it while looking up at the low roof of the corridor. Sure, he wasn't a homicidal maniac anymore, but his mind was still... fragile. He had never called her by her full name before, just that silly pet name he gave her already on her first day in the gang. Back when he laughed as soon as anyone as much as sneezed. She frowned and threw a concerned glance at the door behind her. She wanted that silly and obnoxious goofball back, and she slowly realized that she wanted the old Bentley back more than anything else. How cliché...

She sighed and hung her head. "What's happenin' to me?" She muttered and walked back to the com. room, throwing the plate with the cold food in a bin.

...

She passed Mongo on the way, he was carrying an barely conscious Caleb over his shoulder. When he got a questioning look from Priss, he responded by leaning his head on his massive hands and make snoring sounds. She couldn't help but to smirk at them both. Upon entering the big, round room, she noticed that the mood between the two sides hadn't changed that much, except that the black clad bountyhunter now stood up and leaned his hands on the table, ranting.

"I'll be frank with y'all; I don't give a rats ass 'bout ya clowns, no offense Scrange!" Scrange was too busy being passed out to answer. "Ya can do whatever ya want an' bunk down wherever ya want, we don't care. We've got other things concernin' us right now than a pack of vengeful hayseeds, an' if no one else has somethin' to add, I'll go an' hit the hay right now. There are rooms available now when the entire inn has been evacuated, so feel free to use any of 'em. But don't bother tryin' to assassinate us durin' the night, 'cause w'all sleep lighter than an hyena on caffeine, an' I reckon we won't have to shoot the lot of ya now!" The bountyhunter ranted on as he spotted Priscilla in the corner of his eye. "Priscilla, great timin'! T'morrow I'mma have a talk with Bentley, is he available y'think?"

She shook her head. "No, not the way he is now, even I can't reach him!"

"Well, fix him then! I'm givin' ya the mission to git Bentley in a talkin' fit by t'morrow, it shouldn't be too hard: he trusts ya!"

"That'll be a LOT easier said than done, Rango..." Priss couldn't stop her jaws from grinding her teeth at the order she just got. "He's been through a lot, I doubt he'll ever...!"

"Bullshit, he's Bentley for cryin' out loud!" He scoffed. "He's always recovered, or somethin' similar..." Before Priss could protest, he had turned to the posse again. "As I said, you're all free to stay over the night, or go back to yer town, if there still is a town that is. Myself, I'm goin' to bed an' nobody can stop me!" He backed away from the table and touched the brim of his hat at the others. "G'night, gentlemen!" He said and left to find an empty room to bunk down in.

The posse watched silently as the bountyhunter vanished into the corridor, nobody knew what to say. They could hardly believe that this stingy, grumpy yet surprisingly caring lizard was the same coldblooded murderer who mercilessly executed innocent townspeople just because he had some unfinished business with their sheriff and a family of renegade rattlesnakes. But that didn't mean they could forgive him after all that's happened! In fact, it was the opposite; it made the mens fingers itch even more as they fingered at the handles of their guns. This guy was obviously planning something, but what?

"I know what yer'all thinkin'..." Hicks broke the silence with his solemn, muttering voice. "But he was speakin' the truth: we've all got a bone to pick with Jet an' the Gajerras, an' right now you're more of a nuisance to us than a threat. That's why he ain't ordered us to take y'all down... yet!"

Woodrow growled. "An' we've got quite the bone ta pick with y'all too, y'know!"

"We know, sheriff. An' that's somethin' we'll have to take up t'morrow or somethin'. T'day has been a rough day for us all, an' I think I'mma follow Rango's example an' git some shuteye"

Once again, the posse was taken back by the nonchalance shown by the bountyhunter and his men; they were literally asking their enemies to sleep over. Either it was an example of great hospitality, or equally great stupidity, but nobody seemed to even bother that it was an armed posse after to bring them all to the gallows. The smugglers and the rest of the outlaws left, and maybe it was their careless attitude, but something got the posse to refrain from drawing their guns at the backs of the outlaws as they one by one left to be engulfed by the darkness of the corridor. All except for one.

"Priscilla?" Wounded Bird asked in puzzlement, as his adoptive daughter began to rummage through the food stock which they had managed to salvage from the Basement. With a smirk on her face she found flour, sugar, eggs and even a few cartons of milk, along with a large frying pan.

She ignored the confused and slightly suspicious looks she got from the posse as she began to mix the ingredients in a tin bowl, a randomly improvised recipe.

"So, what do we do now? Go back to Dirt or...?" Doc turned his head to the two sheriffs.

"Well, I'd say it's too late to get goin' back to Dirt. Besides, I wonder if we'll find this place again if we left!" Rango said with a disbelieving frown as he glanced at Priscilla, who was busying herself with throwing more firewood into the fire, careful not to disturb Scrange.

"But to tell ya the truth, I ain't gonna sleep under the same roof as that killer an' his goons..." Woodrows voice was seeping with contempt as he spoke. "There's somethin' fishy goin' on, I'm tellin' ya!"

While the rest of the posse was discussing the plans for the night, Wounded Bird slowly got up from the table and made his way over to Priss. She was busy batting the ingredients together with a spoon, when the clearing of a throat behind her got her to yelp in surprise and snap around, almost splashing the pale batter in Wounded Birds face.

"Sorry" He said with a slightly amused undertone at her startled reaction.

"I-it's alright!" She chuckled nervously and turned back to the stove.

"You're cooking? That's unusual..."

"Well, he needs to eat somethin', since he refused to as much as poke at the food I brought him..." She said flatly and poured some of the batter into the heated up pan, the sludge gave off angry, hissing sounds as it connected with the hot surface. "But I reckon he'll at least look at this!"

"You're like a mother hen, caring for her young..."

She turned around and narrowed her eyes at the tall crow. "'Scuse me?" She said and put a hand on her hip. "What're ya implyin'?"

"Only that I've seen many of your faces, but this is a new one; it's a caring face. A concerned face." The old crow tilted his head at the young aye-aye. "The face of someone who's troubled about their lover"

Priscilla instantly felt her cheeks burn red and she turned away again to hide her blush. "W-well. I... He an' I... We, umm... He..." She stuttered and stared down at the batter in the frying pan. It had to be turned soon, or else the flapjack would be turned into charcoal. "I-I wouldn't s-say 'lovers' exactly. M-More like close f-friends!"

"That's not what your eyes say..."

"I-I ain't lyin'!" She spat and glared at the crow. "Whaddya want, Bird?! 'Cause unless ya know how to flip pancakes, I s'ggest ya vamoose an' leave me alone! Tell the others there are more free rooms at the other side of the great hall." She turned back to the stove and took a deep sigh to cool down and try to get the raging blushes on her cheeks to disappear. "I-I'm sorry... I'm sorry I left the town. I can't explain why, all I know is that I didn't mean to run away with these outlaws... I frankly just don't know what I'm doin' anymore..." When the Crow didn't answer she turned her head just to see that the black, scruffy bird was limping back to the table with the others, she was unaware of the smirk curled up at the corners of his beak. More angry fizzles from the pan caught her attention again and she noticed that the flat pancake had turned a dark brown, almost black color and was reeking with soot. "Damnit!"

…

Bentley was sitting on one of the two beds with his knees pulled up to his chin, wearing the tan shirt and picked at a loose thread. He kept opening and closing his eyes, trying to get the images out of his head. Although he knew it didn't matter if his eyes were opened or closed, he could still see the bodies of the mutilated corpses, strewn across the cavernous space. The bodies of the ones he slaughtered and their horrified screams as he brutally butchered their companions right in front of them was still ringing in his head.

He had enjoyed it that time, to see the life slowly leave their wide opened, terrified eyes had brought a rush to him. It was like having a sugar rush, but stronger and more addictive. They had gleefully watched him suffer, and now it was his turn to laugh at their misery. When Scrange tried to stop him, he had just, without slightest hesitation, thrown himself over the short, stubby rodent and tried to pry his heart out of his chest with his bare hands. But that hadn't been the worst part: the worst part was when Priscilla came back through the door. He didn't want to believe it was her, as he knew he couldn't take the disappointment if she were to vaporize and vanish if he walked up and hugged her.

The fear he saw in her round, yellow eyes when he decided to kill her off, getting rid of his tormentor forever, was still haunting his mind, along with the murdered men. And that fear had returned after his short outburst. That glint of fear he saw in her eyes back then, caused by him, was worse than hearing the screams and seeing the mutilated carcasses for the rest of his life.

He whimpered and curled up, pressing the palms of his hands against his ears as more bloodcurdling screams echoed in his mind. "Get outta there..." He winced. "Just get outta there!"

"Bentley?" Her voice broke through the cacophony and muted the noises, bringing somewhat peacefulness to his mind. He didn't look up at her, in case she'd have that frightened look in her eyes again, but he heard her slowly walk up to the bed and place a plate on the nightstand. "Are ya okay?" He shot a quick glance at her through the thick curtain of hair, barely hanging down in front of his eyes. "I'll take that as a no..." She sighed and climbed up in the bed, slumping down next to him.

Silence fell between them as Priss slowly leaned her head against his shoulder, shortly followed by one of his arms snaking its way around her waist. She smiled to herself and nudged her head against him, but her smiled vanished again as she saw the blank expression on his face.

"Bentley..." She said and removed her head from his shoulder. "What's goin' on?" He didn't respond, so she leaned over him and fetched the plate. "Y'know what? I bet ev'rythin' will seem a LOT better after you've eaten somethin'!"

Bentley responded for the first time with a shake of his head. "I ain't hungry Prissy... I'm sorry, but I just can't eat... wait, are those?" His ears perked up when he saw the floppy, flat discs stocked on the plate.

"Yup! Pancakes!" She smiled as he kept staring at the food. "I know they're not perfect, I ain't exactly chef-material y'know, an' I couldn't find any jam or maple syrup, but do ya still think ya can manage to gobble down a few?"

"Y-ya made these?" He said dumbfounded and flicked his eyes from the pancakes to her.

She nodded. "Yeah, but I managed to burn most of them, here's the one's that seemed edible at least... Hey, watch it!" Without a warning, he had thrown his arms around her and almost managed to push them both down from the bed. She almost spilled the flapjacks off the plate when she tried to keep it from getting squished between them. "Bentley, what...?"

"No, they ARE perfect! Just like you!" He said, his voice was somewhat muffled since he once again had his face buried in her shoulder. She instantly blushed as he too realized what he just said and withdrew, faint red spots were visible on his cheeks. "Umm... I mean..."

"Here!" Priss quickly handed him the plate, before he said something else. He accepted the plate and looked at her with a slightly tilted head.

"What 'bout'cha?"

"Hm?"

"Ain'tcha hungry?"

"Nah, I ate some of that freaky stew Flitch an' Fledge did..." She did a grimace and stuck her tongue out. "Way too much jalapeño! Ya were wise to not eat of it!"

He put the plate down between them. "Then why don't we split these up, huh? I don't wanna feel like I'm hoggin' them all!"

"No, it's alright!" She shook her head and slid down from the bed. "There's one more thing I need to do..."

"You'll be back, right?" His sudden, worried question made her roll her eyes.

"Well, I've been back ev'rytime so far, haven't I?"

"Yeah, but..." He shook his head and waved his hand at her. "Never mind!" Priscilla smiled faintly to herself as she walked out from the room for the last time and closed the door behind her. At least he was talking now, that's a good sign!

…

When Priscilla walked out from the storage room, she was wearing new, temporary clothes and threw her old ones in the same barrel in which she had disposed of Bentleys old clothes. Left to be washed another day. Maybe.

When she entered their room again, she noticed that he had moved around the furniture and placed the two beds next to each other. Himself sat in the middle and grinned sheepishly. She arched an eyebrow at him when she saw that he hadn't eaten the pancakes either.

"Really, Bentley?" She said dryly and nodded at the full plate.

"I ain't gonna eat it all by myself, y'know!" He said stubbornly and crossed his arms. "I told ya that!"

"But...!" She didn't know what to say, so she interrupted herself and just shook her head at him, chuckling in disbelief. Well, talking about a change; a few minutes ago he was the epitome of melancholia, now he almost back to his 'normal' self! Almost... She could still see the fear and regret that clouded his eyes, but at least the smile was back, and that if anything is progress!

With combined forces, they managed to finish the plate with pancakes in just a few minutes. For her first time cooking pancakes, she had to admit that they were pretty okay. Bentley however, loved them, despite discovering eggshells in at least three of them. And it didn't matter to him that they were burned and some were better off as frisbees, all that matter was the SHE had made them.

Priss had no idea what time it was, all she knew was that it was way past midnight and Bentley had fallen asleep a long time ago, with his head on her lap. She was aimlessly tangling and untangling her fingers in his thick hair while he snoozed heavily. He still had a long way to go before he was his old, carefree self. Whatever it was that went on in his head, restrained him a lot and sometimes caused him to space out, just staring blankly into space with a pained frown. Even if she only had to call his name and rustle his shoulder to wake him up, it was still really unnerving. Especially if he woke up and stared at her like she was some kind of ghost. And nobody could blame her if she didn't want to be accused of being a mirage again!

She felt her eyelids grew heavier by the second and it didn't take long time until she too fell asleep, drifting off into dreamland. Having uneasy dreams about Komodo dragons, rabid hyenas and water. Lots and lots of water!

…

Jolene was pacing back and forth in an angry fashion, muttering to herself. Jake was still rolled up in a bun in the corner, desperately trying to get some sleep, although Jolene wasn't making it any easier for the Grim Reaper. He was about to jolt up and shout at her to be still when they heard something in the roof. Both of them snapped their heads up in time to see a hatch open and when a big pile of dark brown and white feathers hopped down, they both drew their guns instinctively.

Thunder Wing arched an eyebrow at them both before skipping over to the hidden door and pecked on it with his sharp, crooked beak. Jolene and Jake exchanged glances when voices were heard on the other side.

The hidden door was yanked open and sheriff Louie poked his head in. He whistled at the great hall and jumped high into the air when Jake cleared his throat.

"Sheriff Graham?" Jolene tilted her head. "What took ya guys so long?"

"Oh, well..." The chubby kangaroo rat said and walked into the Nest, shortly followed by the rest of his gang, and also the men from Dirt. And the women and children. "We went there an' it turned out that the deputy was right, ya wouldn't believe me if I told ya what we've seen! Wait, where's the others?"

Jolene gawked at the mass of people pouring into the great hall, including Blake, who slithered around with a sheet over his head and tried to make himself look at pitiful as possible. Jakes face was unreadable as he watched the people who just got chased out of their own town, some were wounded and Mr Edwards had to be supported by his second oldest child and wife.

_So, Dirt is lost to the Longway-guy?_ Jolene sighed and shook her head. "Seems like Priscilla an' Durango was speakin' the truth after all... What do we do now, Jacob?"

Jake was grinding his jaw and tilted his head down so his eyes were hidden under the brim of his hat. "We'll wait 'til mornin', then I'll talk to Durango..." He tilted his head up again and sternly narrowed his eyes at Jolene. "Alone!"

**That's it for this time!**

**Looks like good ol' B is on his way back, he just needs time now, I guess... Yikes...**

**Anyway, we'll be back next time and keep your eyes peeled; Bentleys story is about to begin ;)**


	52. Bad Bentley

**Awright, we're back! So sorry it's late ;_;... and so short...**

***** Chapter Fifty-two : 'Bad' Bentley *****

Priscilla woke up and completely lost track of time. The room around her was dark, but it wasn't impossible to make out the furniture and the tub at the furthest end. She was about to hoist herself up to a sitting position when a couple of arms appeared from behind her, wrapped themselves around her waist and pulled her back down.

"G'mornin', Bentley..." She sighed when the hyena curled up behind her and brushed his cold, wet nose at the base of her neck.

"G'mornin', Prissy!" He answered. He still didn't sound like his normally cheerful self, but at least it was better than yesterday. Neither of them said anything for a while, until Priss decided to break the silence.

"Rango d'manded talk to ya t'day. Think you're up for it?" She got her answer when Bentley whimpered and buried his face between her shoulders.

"No!" He winced with a muffled voice.

"It's alright, ya don't have to see him right now...!"

"I don't wanna see ANYONE t'day!" He shook his head, still with his face in her back. "Or t'morrow! Or the day after that! Or any other day at all for that matter!"

She nodded and made an effort to get up from the bed."Then maybe I should leave..." She said, not the least bit surprised when he protested loudly and pulled her back down again.

"No! Can't you stay? At least for a bit?"

"Why? I thought ya said ya didn't wanna see anyone?"

"I don't! B-but, not everyone... I mean, I want'cha to stay, only you! I don't wanna see the others, but I... I just don't wanna be alone..." Without an answer she rolled on to her other side, facing him. He avoided eyecontact with her by flickering his eyes to the pillow and stare blankly at it while he slowly withdrew his arms from around her waist.

"Why don't ya wanna see the others then?" When he didn't answer, she got a frown between her brows. "Ya ain't scared of them, are ya?"

"A bit..." He mumbled and closed his eyes. "You know I did some really bad things yesterday, Prissy. An'... And Rango just wanna tell me that he's kickin' me outta the gang!"

"How can ya be so sure of that?"

"B'cause he hates me now... They ALL do!" He bit his lip and clenched his eyes tighter shut. "But I don't blame them... I tried to kill them all, an' I almost succeeded with Scrange! An' you... I almost killed ya too..."

Priss sighed and tried to not roll her eyes at the angsty hyena as she slowly lifted her hand to his cheek. She doubted the others hated him, as a matter of fact, they all seemed pretty concerned about him. Normally, she would think it was strange that the coldblooded renegade bountyhunters in an outlaw gang actually cared about each other, almost like a family, but now after actually spending some time as one of the guys, she found it would've been even weirder if they DIDN'T care.

"Do... Do ya think I hate ya for that?" She couldn't help her curiosity and asked him while she carefully brushed away a strand of hair that fell into his eyes.

"Yeah... A bit..." He answered after a short moment of hesitation.

"Well, I don't! I don't go 'bout makin' pancakes for people I hate, y'know!" She tried on a careful smile. "An' I don't think Rango an' the others would've let ya live if they hated ya! Just look at Blake, they hate his guts an' they've tried to off him what, two-three times now?"

"Ya should hate me; I would've killed ya if it weren't for Grannys doll, y'know!"

"Bentley, we've been through this b'fore: ya didn't kill all those men! Or attack Scrange!"

"Yes it was!"

"No it wasn't! That guy was..." She paused, looking for the right word. "A monster... Whoever it was, it wasn't you!"

"Well, if it wasn't me, then how come I can r'member everythin' so clearly?" He slowly opened his eyes again and looked at her. Mixed emotions of fear, anger and sadness played in them, and he must have known how pathetic he looked because he quickly averted his eyes again, this time to the opposite wall. "I can still hear them, Prissy... They're still alive, in my head! They're screamin', an' beggin' me to let them go. They're quieter now when you're here, but when ya leave, they come back. They haunt me, an' they'll keep haunt me 'til I'm dead myself!" He paused and shook his head. "No, Prissy. I was the one who killed them, I'm the monster..."

"For cryin' out loud, Bentley! It's WAY too early to have this discussion right now! Ya did NOT kill them, understand? Y'ain't no monster, Bentley! Ya never been one, an' you'll never be one! You're just... just so..." She let out a restrained sigh, scooted closer and leaned her head against his chest. He seemed surprised at first, but then he let his chin rest on top of her head and wrapped his arms around her again. "I've killed people too, Bentley. Robbers, 'runner-thieves an' murderers of all kinds. An' I wouldn't hesitate to kill any bastard who deserves it! That makes me more of a monster than ya, b'cause ya never wanna kill anyone. Ya said so yourself!"

"But ya do it b'cause ya have to, you're a lawman n'all. I... I did it b'cause... B'cause I thought it was fun!" She felt him began to tremble and his arms around her tightened it's grip. "First, I was just so angry at them. I wanna make them suffer, wanted to see them beg for their lives... But then I... I realized how fun it was... The way they squirmed on the ground, covered in their own blood... It was hilarious, so I..." He discontinued when tears began to burn behind his eyelids but he tried to blink them away. "I-I'm a bloody psycho, Prissy, I've done so many things that's unforgivable in just one day... H-how come you've forgiven me already?"

"B'cause I still don't think it was you, I know you'd never do anythin' like that!" She answered without skipping a beat.

"Then who was it?"

She was quiet for a while, thinking. "Someone who's a lot like ya, but still very different. Someone who was in charge, some sort of 'Bad Bentley' or somethin'..."

He arched an eyebrow at her. "Bad Bentley?"

"Well, it's the only explanation I've got! I don't buy the whole 'Bentley the homicidal maniac' concept!"

"But still, Bad Bentley is still a part of Bentley..." He frowned worriedly and shuddered. "W-what if he decides to come back?"

Priss looked up and slightly pulled away from him, enough to allow her to look him in the eyes. "Dont'cha worry 'bout that, he won't! I'll make sure of that!"

For the first time since last night, she saw a faint smile tug at the corner of his mouth. "Thanks, Prissy..."

"Don't mention it. Now, have ya changed yer mind 'bout wantin' to see the others?"

Bentley grimaced and pulled her closer to him again. "Not really..." He mumbled, earning a muffled sigh from Priscilla. "Prissy... I gotta tell ya somethin'..." He loosened his arms around her and let one of his hands rest on her shoulder.

"What's it now?" She hoisted herself up on her elbow and tilted her head at him.

"It's somethin' I've been tryin' to tell ya for a long time... Sure, I DID tell ya that b'fore, or Bad Bentley did, so it doesn't really count. But anyway, I've been tryin' to tell ya this for days now, but there's always been distractions, but now when we're alone I thought I might try to tell ya this. It's kind of important actually, an' I totally mean it, but what I meant to say is that..."

She was listening to him ramble on with a smile and a slow shake off her head. "Bentley?" She said after a while without him getting to the point. He stopped blabbering and looked at her with a confused look. "I love ya too!"

He froze up and went completely silent for a few heartbeats, before he pouted and averted his eyes, a faint red color appeared on his cheeks. "Hey, I-I was just 'bout to say that! But to you!"

"Tough luck!" She jokingly said and ruffled the hair on his head.

"Hey!" He chuckled and yanked his head away, drawing out a giggle from Priss. He heaved himself up on his elbows as well and one of the corners of his mouth was tugged up in a lopsided smile.

Priss returned the smile and put her hand on his cheek and let it travel down to his mouth, playing with the little tuft of facial hair on his chin. "It's good to see ya smile again..." She said eventually. "Ya don't look like yourself when ya mope!" Bentley didn't answer, he just chuckled again and placed his hand over hers.

He soon moved his hand, let it run along her arm and up to her shoulder again. "Listen, I don't wanna nag, but... I l-love ya, Prissy. I really do!"

She let out an amused sigh and rolled her eyes. "I know, ya told me that b'fore. Or, Bad Bentley did... Along with a lot of other stuff..."

"Yeah... sorry 'bout that..." He averted his eyes and hung his head.

"Nah, it's okay! Really!" Priss answered with a chuckle before she rolled to the back and let her head fall back on her pillow. "Although ya could've left that thing with yer Ex out..."

"My... Ex?" He tilted his head and looked at her with a puzzled look. She glanced at Bentley from the corner of her eye and raised a meaning eyebrow. "W-wait, ya talkin' 'bout Corny?!" She could swear even his ears turned red as he jolted upright. "W-what, NO! We were never... Eww, no! She an' I were just friends! Friends! I-I swear!" His arms were flopping about in a panicked fashion as he tried to convince Priscilla of his innocence in the matter. "Alright, there was this ONE time we went too far an' ended up on the loft, but we promised each other NEVER to talk 'bout it again! An' I definitely learned my lesson that day: NEVER play truth or dare with a mountain lion, ESPECIALLY not when there's alcohol involved!"

"Bentley!" Priss said with an amused laugh in her voice. "It's alright! I don't...!"

He lied down again, put his arm over her stomach and snuggled up next to her. "I never loved her as much as I love ya, y'know!" He mumbled as he let his head rest on her shoulder and collarbone. When she didn't answer, he opened one of his eyes and looked up at her. She was glaring down at him with a flat look on her face.

"Bentley, really? I said I don't care, it's in the past, right?"

"Yeah... Sorry... Am I..." He paused and flickered his eyes to the side for a minute. "Am I bein' clingy again?"

"Right now? Yeah" She nodded. "Think ya can let me go now? I wanna get up an' talk to the others, if it's alright with you, mister?" He hesitated for a while, before he removed his arm and got up on his knees.

Priss got up from the bed, got dressed and was just about to march up to the door when Bentley scurried up to her. He wrapped his arms around her and leaned his head on her shoulder. She sighed and rolled her eyes. "What is it now?"

"I can't hear anythin'!" He said, sounding a lot more cheerful than before.

"Wha?" Priss tilted her head and spun around.

"The screams! I-I think they're gone!" He had a carefully optimistic grin on his lips as he spoke. "I haven't heard anythin' for a while now! Sure, it could be because you're here too... I always usually hear at least one or two screams, but now they're gone!"

She chuckled and grabbed his hands. "That's great!" He nodded frantically, before placing a hand behind her neck, leaning forward and kiss her. She blushed hard at first, but when their lips connected, she felt the happy, fluttery feeling reawaken in her gut. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down closer to her and made him put his other hand on her hip.

They stood there in what felt like an eternity before she slowly pulled away, breathing hard. He threw both his arms around her, not willing to let go of her just yet, and tried to revive the kiss, but she shook her head and placed a pair of fingers on his lips, gently pushing him away.

"Look, I gotta go see the others now, ya comin' with me?" She asked him with a careful smile.

He was quiet for a while before he nodded and slowly let go of her. "Ya go ahead, I'll catch up!"

She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before she walked out of the room and closed the door. Bentley traced his fingertips with a dumb smile on the spot she had kissed him, but then he thought of the others and couldn't help but to wince and his ears drooped. He still didn't want to see the others...

…

To Priss' surprise, the communion room was empty. Even Scrange was missing. She heard a murmur of voices emanating from the great hall, thinking that it maybe was the echoes that made it sound like a whole town meeting in there. But it turned out that a town meeting was just what it was.

She couldn't help but to gawk in disbelief at Dirts population, crowding in the massive hall. When did they get here?! And how?! The three rattlesnakes were nowhere to be seen though, and neither could she see anyone from the outlaw gang. At least not at first, she later noticed that the gang was gathered near the stable, as far away from the townspeople as possible. And Rango, the bountyhunter, was having an argument with someone in the corridor leading to Thunder Wings room.

She walked towards the bountyhunter and noticed that out of all the people he could have an argument with, he just had to be talking to Wounded Bird. They both seemed agitated, although Wounded Bird was a LOT better at hiding his anger. Upon getting closer to the two, she could also hear what it was they were talking about.

"An' how can I know you're not jus' throwin' a load of bullshit in my face?" The basilisk raised a skeptical eyebrow and folded his arms over his chest.

"Are you calling me a liar?" Wounded Bird retaliated with a proud snort.

"Maybe..."

The old crow didn't answer for a while. "Fine. Call me a liar. But I've told you the truth about what really happened to those two, it's up to you to believe it or not."

"But I've seen the graves myself!"

"They're empty, as I told you. Samara never got ill, and Tovi never had that hunting accident. Neither of them died. That's just what they told you so you could take their daughter to some safe place, where she could grow up without having to pay the price for her parents mistake"

Priscilla had to slow down. _Tovi an' Samara? Now why does that sound so familiar?_ She thought hard about it, those names definitely rang a bell, but why? _Wait, Tovi an' Samara? Weren't they my...?_ She looked up and realized that Rango and Wounded Bird had noticed her by now. Both of them looked just as shocked as her. "M-my parents?"

**Here, have a twist before we leave ;)! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!**

**See y'all next chapter ^^! I promise it wont get as delayed as this was!**

**And I've been thinking that maybe I should rewrite the first chapters, seeing as they are grammatically unacceptable and I think Priss needs more of an intro o.O... Meh, I'll see whenever I get the time ^^**


	53. Burying the hatchet

**Yup, we're back again ^^, sorry, it's kinda late again, isn't it -.-? God damn it...**

**And I just saw your review, Stony, and buddy are you in luck: this chappie has almost only the snakes in it ;D! Almost! Except for Jonas though... But still, it's at least four of the snakes xD! **

**Ain't got much to say, other than that ^^... ENJOY~! **

***** Chapter Fifty-three : Burying The Hatchet *****

Blake shook his head and buried himself in the sand so only his back was visible, the sheet was still covering his head. "Just leave me alone!"

Jolene growled in annoyance and tapped her rattle impatiently on the ground. "Blake, I'm gettin' sick an' tired of ya an' yer self-pityin' ass! GIT. UP!" And with that, she grabbed the sheet and ripped it off her brothers head, making him flinch at the sudden sunlight.

"No! I won't!" He protested and covered his eyes with his tail.

"An' why the heck not?!" Jolenes patience was running dangerously low here. All morning, she and Jake had tried to get Blake to leave the corner outside the Nest, but to no avail. That stubborn son of a gun just wouldn't leave his spot.

"Just give it up, Jo..." Jake sighed and continued to rub his temple with his gatling gun rattle, giving off soft, metallic clinks whenever the cold steel met his sharp scales. "I don't think he's gonna leave there anytime soon..."

Jolene ignored her bigger brother and kept pressing the same question on Blake. "I asked: why. The heck. Not?!"

"B'cause I don't wanna, okay?!" Blake glared at his sister with one, fire colored eye. "Seriously, how would YOU feel if yer fangs got ripped out, leavin' ya unable to talk like a decent person an' droolin' like a retard, not to mention that ya made yourself look like some fuckin' weaklin' in front of an entire town?"

"Well, I wouldn't be mopin' 'bout it like ya do, it was only one fang an' now you're talkin' perfectly fine to me! Now, 'bout that droolin'..." She swatted him on the head loosely, right next to the scar. "Now, GIT UP already! You're only makin' yourself look even more like a weaklin' when ya just lie here an' feel sorry for yourself!"

He muttered something to himself and flattened his head to the ground. "I'm still ain't movin'..."

"ARGH!" Jolene let out a defeated groan and slammed her head in the nearby canyon wall. She instantly regretted that decision however, as it made her head hurt even more, leaving her to angrily mutter to herself as she slithered over to Jake while rubbing her aching head with her tail. "Now it's YER turn!" Jake stopped kneading his forehead and looked down at her with a raised eyebrow, without uttering a single word. "What're ya waitin' for? He's yer brother too!" Jake still didn't answer. Jolene let out another frustrated sound and turned back to Blake. "Damn you, Jake!" She hollered at him, earning a smirk from the Grim Reaper.

"Sorry, that's already been done, Jo..." Jake said quietly with an amused tone in his voice, before turning his head to the opposite canyon wall with a suspicious frown. He had heard someone shuffle about up there, and when he flicked his tongue at the mysterious sound, he immediately recognized the smell of Bad Bill and his gang, although they seemed have gotten more since last time he saw them. He growled quietly to himself. "Now what're they doin' here?" He was awoken from his thoughts by a loud yelp from his brother.

"OW! JO! Stop that! JAAAKE! Tell our sister to stop HITTIN' ME! OWIE!" Blake shouted as he tried to avoid the furious Jolene, who had found a large stick to swing at her little brother.

"I'll stop when ya get outta that hole an' frickin' PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER! You're an adult for heavens sake, an' I think it's time ya start actin' like one!" Jolene hissed and whacked Blake on the back with the stick to put emphasis on her words. "Just GIT UP!"

Blake whimpered and turned to his brother with large, scared eyes. "Jake, HELP ME!"

Jake muttered something to himself and rolled his eyes as he slithered up to his younger siblings. Just as Jolene raised her tail, holding the stick, Jake yanked it out of her grasp, making Jolene turn around and glare at him, while Blake drew a relieved sigh. "Y'two are b'yond embarrassing, y'know that?" Jake spat and threw the stick to the side.

"But I'm sick an' tired of Blake an' his mopin' ass!" Jolene replied without skipping a beat. "Ever since he got his ass kicked he's done nothin' but pityin' himself, an' just sits there in the corner, sulkin' with a frickin' sheet on his head!" She snorted and raised an eyebrow at her younger brother. "I think he should be glad he survived at all!"

"What's the point of livin' if ya look like a dope?" Blake said and flicked with his tongue over the empty hole where his fang should have been. "There's no way I can show myself in public now! I-I'll be the Laughing Stock of the West, instead of the Vampire of the West!"

Jolene didn't answer, she just cocked her head at Jake and raised both of her brows at him. _See what I'm talkin' 'bout?_

Jake cursed lowly at himself and glared at Blake. "Listen up now, little brother, Jolene is right. I'm tired of yer lazy ass sulkin' in a corner when we've got bigger things to do" He towered over his little brother, who recoiled under his brothers threatening posture. "I suggest that ya quit bein' so stubborn, git yer lazy ass back in the Nest an' STOP bein' such a little girl! You're my brother, for cryin' out loud! Ya think I'm proud to be seen next to a lil', whimperin' whelp?"

"Ya ain't tellin' me what to do, Jake!" Blake retaliated with a hiss, but he soon got to regret it when Jake growled and bared his fangs in annoyance.

"Either ya do as I say, or I'll personally send yer god forsaken soul straight to hell where it belongs! MOVE IT, BLAKE!" Jakes voice thundered in the gorge, making the walls shake and rubble to fall down.

"Gee, calm down, bro!" Blake scoffed and straightened up. "Seriously, ya make me start to prefer Jolene with the stick!" He mumbled and slowly and reluctantly made his way to the entrance of the Nest.

Jolene chuckled in amusement. "Well, that was efficient!" She said and slithered after her little brother.

Before Jake followed his siblings into the Nest, he first sighed and shook his head. "I've said it b'fore, I'll say it again an' I'll probably say it 'til the sun goes black; y'two are nothin' but a curse!"

…

While inside, Blake kept hanging his head low and Jake began scanning the area for the bountyhunter, whom he still hadn't gotten the time to talk to.

"Oh, an' Blake!" Jolene said, nudging her brother in the side to get his attention. "Whenever ya see Coral again, make sure ya APOLOGIZE! An' thank her!"

Blake frowned down at his sister. "Why?"

"B'cause ya broke that poor girls heart BIG time, ya cheatin' sonnova bi...!"

"I know that! But why should I thank her?"

"Well, y'know, if it weren't for her you'd be pullin' up daisies by now!"

Blake tilted his head. "Why the fuck would I be struttin' 'round, pickin' flowers? Do I look gay to ya?" He asked dryly, earning a light swat on the head by Jolene.

"You'd be DEAD! Asshole..."

Blake tilted his head to the other side and gaped at his sister. "Why? W-what happened while I was out?" He listened in disbelief as Jolene told him what happened while he was dying in fever, and when Coral came with a satchel of healing herbs, just to quietly disappear again into the night. Blake was quiet for an uncharacteristically long time, even after Jolene stopped talking. "But, why would she do that?" He finally said.

Jolene shrugged. "Beats me! I wouldn't have done it, to be honest!"

"I mean, why would she even bother? Rang-Rang wants me dead, doesn't he? So why would Coral... Wait, ya wouldn't have saved me if ya were Coral?"

"An' ya were the self-centered prick who cheated on me with three cheap saloon ladies? Nope!" She shook her head from side to side. "I'd leave yer sorry ass to yer fate, b'cause ya deserved it! Now what's up with that look?"

"Thanks, sis. Good to know that ya care..."

"Anytime, bro!"

Blake was about to come with another comeback when he saw the tricolored snake herself in the corner of his eye. He discontinued himself before he even could open his mouth and stared at Coral, until she stared back. He glanced at his sister, blurted out a quick 'excuse me' before he slithered across the room to where Coral just slithered out from a corridor.

She recoiled slightly when she saw him coming closer and contemplated fleeing back into the corridor, where Blake was too large to squeeze through. But she remained still as he stopped in front of her. Her grass green eyes narrowed at the rattlesnake as she waited for him to speak.

"So, umm, hey! Coral!" Blake said after being quiet for a while, looking a bit dumb as he had just gawked at her with a confused look on his face. "Umm, c-can I talk to ya for a sec?"

Coral skeptically raised an eyebrow as she slowly nodded. He seemed odd... Odder than usual. He stuttered and fumbled as he talked, and clearly seemed nervous about something. She wasn't sure what to expect, so she kept her distance, just in case.

"Soo. I just heard that ya... Well, when I was, umm... Hurt an' ya... well, ya..." He spoke lower and lower and scratched the back of his neck with his rattle. "What I'm tryin' to ask is... well... Why did ya do it?" He could tell by her confused look that she hadn't understood a thing of what he just said. "Jolene said that ya came with herbs when I was in trouble. Is that true?"

Coral flinched and stood there blinking for a few seconds, before she began to nervously fumble around with the tip of her tail, nodding almost unnoticeable.

"Oh, ya did? Well then, why? Why did ya do it?" Blake was a bit surprised that she actually admitted helping him out. He knew she couldn't answer the question in an understandable way, yet he still couldn't help but to ask her out of curiosity.

She sighed and shook her head, before turning her head up to look him in the eyes and shrug. She really didn't know why she did it herself. She just... did it!

"Soo... does that mean we're good now?" He grinned and tilted his head slightly."You're not mad at me anymore? It's all water under the bridge, right?" His grin was replaced by a disappointed and confused look when Coral frowned and hissed at him. "Okay, okay, I git it! You're still mad at me! Look, I just wanna say... What'cha did..." He started hesitating and stumble on the words again. "I just wanna tell ya I'm... Well, y'know... What ya did for me... An' what I did... I'm... Oh, to hell with it!" He gave up with a frustrated hiss, turned around and slithered back to his siblings.

Coral stared after him with a mix of puzzlement and suspicion. He had acted very weird, even for being him! A part of her though he seemed pretty cute when he stuttered on the words like that, and another part of her wanted to slap her for thinking that. It was almost like he had wanted to tell her something, but backed out. She gave him one last, slightly amused look before she slithered over to the gang.

…

Jolene grinned in amusement at Blake upon his return. "THAT was the first time I've ever seen ya stutter in front of a girl!" She laughed, and got a nasty look from Blake in return.

"Just shut up, Jo!" He hissed, clearly frustrated, but Jolene only laughed even louder and gave him a friendly punch on the back with her rattle.

"Oh, lighten up! That only means that there might be SOME humanity left in ya!"

Blake mumbled something in response and wished he had his hat so he cold pull it over his eyes and hide someplace dark. Jake watched his younger siblings from the corner on his eye and shook his head hopelessly. He opened his mouth to say something to them, but slowly closed it as he spotted the bountyhunter, standing in one of the corridors. He was talking to that old indian when the deputy came out from another corridor. She looked around the area for a few beats, before she spotted the bountyhunter and began to walk towards him and Wounded Bird, but something made her slow down to a halt when she got close to them. Probably something they said, because she stared at the two with a shocked, mute expression, and they stared back at her in surprise.

Without a word, Jake left his two siblings and slithered away to the trio, Blake and Jolene looked after him with their head slightly tilted to the side in confusion, before they too saw the bountyhunter. Jolene growled quietly as her tail slowly made it's way to her gun.

"No, Jo. Ya r'member what Jake said? Leave Durango to his ol' friend..." Blake said without looking at Jolene, causing Jolene to withdraw her tail with a sigh.

"Fine. But if I ever git my coils on that maggot..." She stopped, not having to continue further to get her message through to Blake.

"Not if I git him first, sister!" Blake replied with a nod of his head.

Just as Jake got closer to the bountyhunter and the other two, Priscilla snapped out of her shock and let her gaze flick between Wounded Bird and Rango.

"My parents... are alive?" She managed to say and got a frown between her brows.

"Last time I saw them" Wounded Bird nodded, and prepared for getting yelled at by a furious Priscilla. But nothing. She seemed to be keeping a lid on her anger, if she ever felt any, that is.

"W-when was that?"

"Eighteen years ago" Wounded Bird slowly shook his head. "Last time I saw them, they told me they had to flee, and leave you in their good friends care"

"Flee?" Priss frowned in disbelief. "Flee from what?"

"From their past, they told me. They said they tried to flee from it, but it only made everything worse. They said it was a mistake." Wounded Bird shrugged. "I don't know what exactly happened, that's all they told me."

Priss was quietly staring into the ground, trying to process what she just learned about her parents, whom she never had the chance to meet. "Why...?" She whispered after managing to collect herself. "Why didn'tcha tell me 'bout this b'fore?" There was finally a hint of anger in her voice.

"You never asked" Wounded Birds answer only made her grit her teeth harder.

"B'cause I never asked? Ya held out on info 'bout my parents JUST b'cause I never asked 'bout them?!" She involuntarily raised her voice and attracted some attention by the nearby townspeople. "They were MY parents! My REAL parents! Didn't I have any rights to know what happened to MY REAL parents!?" Wounded Birds face was unfazed by her burst of rage. Despite her angry yelling, he kept a straight, solemn face while he listened to her. She cursed and clenched her eyes shut to force the tears of frustration back. She managed to calm down until she spoke with a normal voice. "My parents never died, did they? At least not like they told Rango?"

"No" Wounded Bird slowly shook his head.

"Are they still alive?"

The Crow indian hesitated. "I don't know. Maybe yes, maybe no. Anything could happen under eighteen years for someone on the run from something, or someone"

Priss didn't reply. At least he was being honest with her, if you'd call it honest to knowingly holding back on telling her about her parents who might still be alive and out there, after all this time.

"But what I don't get is, why would they lie to me like that, IF what you're sayin' is true?" Rango the bountyhunter, snorted and crossed his arms, jumping into the conversation. "Tovi KNEW he could trust me, so why lie like that in the letter? Tellin' me Samara's dead an' he's as good as dead, n'all..."

"Sure, he trusted you. But maybe he didn't trust whoever was delivering the mail?" The indian raised an eyebrow at the basilisk lizard. Rango didn't answer.

"Tell me what happened..." Priss opened her eyes and locked eyecontact with Wounded Bird, staring with a frown into his dark whiskey colored eyes. "Tell me everythin'!"

Wounded Bird opened his beak to tell her, but quickly closed it when the Grim Reaped slithered up behind Priss, his hellfire colored eyes locked on Rango. Priss frowned and looked back, almost gasping out loud when she noticed the gigantic diamondback towering up behind her.

"Sorry 'bout that" He chuckled darkly at Priscillas startled face.

"Great, now what do YOU want?" Rango grimaced when he realized how troublesome this probably was going to get.

"Durango, I've been meanin' to talk to ya all mornin'" Jake answered with a low voice as he kept his eyes locked on Rango.

"The name's Rango, Durango is long since dead!" Rango snapped and threw his arms out. "An' what a shame: I've been meanin' to AVOID ya all DAY!" Jake narrowed his eyes at the basilisk, making it clear that he wouldn't take no for an answer. Rango glared back and the two had a psychic tug-of-war, until Rango gave up with a restrained sigh. "FINE! Let's just go, so we can get this over with! An' indian, I'd tell Priss the story, the WHOLE story, if I were you! Don't forget that she, just like Caleb, now got a berserk who'd do her every biddin'!" The last thing he added as a joke, but judging from Priscillas angrily narrowed eyes, he could tell that she didn't find it as amusing as he did.

Jake went around Priscilla as he followed Rango deeper into the corridor. When they were further away from the others, the basilisk lizard stopped and turned around to Jake, his eyes narrowed in a cold scowl and his arms defiantly folded across his chest.

"Now what is it, handbag?" He spat out, but the insult only made Jake chuckle.

"Handbag? Now where have I heard that b'fore?" The rattlesnake said with an amused tilt of his head.

"I bet ya r'member very well, just sing it already; what's so important? I've got better things to do!"

"The Gajerras..." Jake said flatly, earning a surprised raised eyebrow from the much smaller lizard. "What's yer plan for the Gajerras?"

"Why do ya wanna know?"

"Well, it was their father who shot Clara, wasn't it?"

The name made Rangos eyes darken and he bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. "NEVER say that name again, Jake." He growled silently.

"Why not?"

"Ya know DAMN WELL why ya shouldn't!"

"Ya STILL grievin' that woman? For cryin' out loud, Durango, it was over twenty years ago!" Jake hissed. "She was my friend too, but at least I ain't afraid to talk 'bout her!"

Quicker than Jake had anticipated, Rango had drawn one of his guns and aimed it straight at the rattlesnake, his eyes were the eyes of a killer. Jake flinched in surprise, before squinting at Rango and growled threateningly at the lizard.

"She was YER friend, not mine. She was my wife..." He slowly let his gun droop and point at the ground. "She was my everythin'..."

"That's bullshit, buddy! Ya were bloody surrounded by friends an' family! Ya know me an' my family would stand b'hind ya through anythin'!"

"Really? Then why didn't ya follow me an' punished those bandits once an' for all?"

"B'cause that was just FOOLISH! Sure, the judge did wrong, but ya as a deputy would've know better than to just waltz off to the Harolds farm an' just shoot ev'ryone ya saw!" The two men just stood there, staring each other out for what seemed like an eternity. If looks could kill, they would both just have evaporated right there on the spot. Jake was the first to avert his eyes. "So, what're ya gonna do with 'em?"

"Huh?"

"Ev'ryone, the Gajerras, that Longway-guy..."

"To be honest, I ain't all too desperate to get those Gajerras. I've probably got some people in my team who's more eager to bust bullets in their brains... Although that 7000-dollars-each bounty on their heads would've kept me an' my men happy for a couple of months!"

"Ya mean that hyena?"

"That hyena an' his girl, yeah"

"An' Longway?"

"HIM I wanna get!" Rango looked down at the ground and holstered his gun again. "That lyin' cheapskate sonnova bitch got a bullet with his name on in my gun, I'm tellin' ya!"

Jake cocked an eyebrow at him. "So?"

"So? I'm gonna make sure he gets it!" He held up his hands. "Look, I know we had a feud goin' on, but that'll have to wait! My friend need his honor restored, an' since that coon tried to kill one of my men, eh women, right in front of her mentally unstable lover, thus hurtin' my entire gang, I'm takin' it VERY personal. An' ya know how pissed off I get when I take somethin' personal!" Rango folded his arms again. "That idiot should've known better than to piss me off!"

Jake chuckled. "Listen, I've got a suggestion; I owe the sheriff of the town my life..."

"That nincompoop?!"

"Yes, that 'nincompoop'. Anyway, I need to pay off that debt now, an' I was thinkin' of doin' that by helpin' him get his town back. But the problem is, I don't think we can take those guys without yer help." It was obvious that Jake was struggling to say those words, but he wasn't going to let that show too much. "Ya know how to fight those guys, me an' the others would probably just screw up, an' a screw-up is the least this town needs right now." Rango didn't answer, he was just staring with a skeptical frown at Jakes face. "So I've got a suggestion; I won't let anyone kill ya OR yer gang, if ya help us defeat the Longway guy an' the Gajerras. I was thinkin' ya might wanna git back at 'em, so I won't let anyone deal a final blow to them either, but to leave them to ya. Whaddya say?"

"I say that you're crazy" Rango answered without skipping a beat. "I'm the one ya should protect the others from! I've got killin' yer brother as numero uno on my priority list! Not to mention that both ya an' yer sister TOO managed to get on my 'to kill-list' too! I ain't afraid of the Dirtonians!"

"Well, ya should be, b'cause they ALL wanna kill ya for everythin' ya done to hurt the town. An' speakin' of my family..." He leaned closer to the lizard and growled. "If ya as much as touches either Jolene or Blake again, I'll take it personally. An' ya know how pissed of I get whenever I take anythin' personally!"

Rango held up his hands in defense and backed a few steps. "Yeah, yeah, I hear ya!"

Jake hissed and quickly wrapped his coils around the bountyhunter, stopping him from going anywhere. "Listen, Durango. I'm offerin' ya a deal here. You've heard 'bout me, an' ya know what I'm capable of, if I were you I'd take the deal!"

"Right now I feel threatened an' I ain't agreein' to anythin' when an overgrown rattler looks at me like I'm his dinner an' tries to squeeze the livin' life outta me! Let me down an' I'll think 'bout it!" The basilisk snapped back, his voice was surprisingly stable even as he was being squeezed by a giant snake. Jake snorted, but reluctantly let the little lizard go. Rango coughed and staggered as soon as his feet touched the ground again. "You're nuts, Jake! But considerin' the options here, it's a damn good deal..." He put his hand to his chin as he pondered. "I ain't no fool, we'll definitely need help against Jet an' his men, an' y'all need help too, since Jet got enough weapons to start a war with another country..." He glanced up at the snake, who impatiently was tapping his gatling-rattle at the ground. "Me an' my men gets to go after that, right? No prosecution?"

"I said I wouldn't let anyone as much as layin' a finger on either ya or yer gang, so yeah, no prosecution"

"An' you'll be able to pay the measly sheriff Goody-two-shoes back?" Jake nodded in reply, making Rango scratch his chin. "But I've still got the issue with yer family..."

"We'll take that later, who knows, ya might've changed yer mind by then?" Jake snickered, but they both knew that wasn't true.

"So, it's a temporary truce between our sides?"

"Pretty much, yeah"

Rango was thinking for a while longer, pondering both upsides and downsides with the deal. "Fine!" He looked up at Jake and nodded. "Let's bury the hatchet for a while, at least 'til we've got all of this b'hind us!" He was going to extend his hand for Jake to shake it, but then he glanced down at the massive gatling-rattle. "It stills counts even if we don't shake on it, right? Trust me, if ya had hands I'd definitely shake 'em, no offense!" He nodded down at the gatling, and Jake nodded in return.

"Right" He then proceeded with cracking up in a dark, rumbling chuckle. "R'mind me once again why we're tryin' to kill each other?"

"Easy, you're hired to kill my friend, so my friend hired me to kill ya b'fore ya kill him" Rango shrugged. "Like I said; it's nothin' personal! Now, if you'll just tell the other 'bout the plans an' I'll wait for my strategist to crawl out from his den so we can get down to business!"

Jake frowned in surprise at Rango. "Yer strategist?!"

"Yeah, commonly known as Bentley"

"Excuse me if I'm wrong, but didn't he just flip an' went on a berserking murder-streak in a basement?"

"Yeah..." Rango shrugged. "Dont'cha just hate it when that happens?"

**Alright, I guess that thing with the Gajerras would make more sense to those of you who's read Rangos story *wink wink* ;)**

**Anyway, hopefully I'll stop being so godamn slow with the chapters so y'all won't have to wait for so long for the next chappie -.-...**


	54. Morning thoughts

**Aaand next chappie is finally here ^^! I just noticed the one-year anniversary of SWG is coming up, btw ;)! I'm still trying to come up with something for the occasion, but I'm sooo bad at coming up with these things -.-...**

**It's pretty much just a filler chapter, but anyway: enjoy~! ^^**

***** Chapter Fifty-four : Morning Thoughts *****

Caleb woke up with a groan, his head felt like it was about to burst. He winced and ran a hand through the curly mess of hair on his head and felt a bump on the side. The bump also hurt like hell. He muttered something incoherent to himself and looked around the room he had woken up in. It was the little secluded room he and Mongo had been given by Jonas, to keep 'the monster' away from the others.

The murderous hulk himself sat on his bed with his broad shoulders slouching and the underdimensioned head hung low, fully concentrated on the little wooden figurine he was carving. Caleb dragged himself up to an upright position and suspiciously narrowed his eyes at the giant, until Mongo began to feel uncomfortable under the young aye-ayes glares.

"Mongo... Why do I have a bump on my head?" Caleb asked suspiciously and turned around to the giant, putting a hand on the side of his head where the bump was throbbing with pain. Mongo paused, stopping with the knife on the piece of firewood in his hands, before he shrugged innocently and resumed his carving. Caleb repeated the question, louder this time and this time Mongo stopped carving completely and looked up at the little aye-aye sitting across him on the other bed. "Mongo, why the hell do I have a frickin' bump on my head?" Caleb asked a third time through clenched teeth.

Mongo shrugged again and said something, which to everyone else would sound like an incoherent rumbling. Caleb knew what he was saying, since he knew what to listen for amongst all that growling noise.

"I needed to sleep? Wait, WAIT! Did YOU knock me on the head?! Just so that I would go to sleep?!" Caleb hissed in pain when the bump sent a jolt of pain through his head, due to his raised voice. "I've told you SO many times: you're not my mom! I go to bed whenever I want! And you CAN'T hit me in the head so I get knocked out every time!" Caleb rolled his eyes and put his palm up in front of him when the giant was about to apologize. "Y'know what? Just forget it, okay? Anyway, what time is it?"

Mongo thought for a while, before he replied by shrugging his massive shoulders.

"Great! Just fuckin' great! Why can't Jonas get some clocks down here so we know when the hell it's daylight outside? This place is more disorientin' than..." Caleb muttered sarcastically and jumped down on the cold rock floor before he finished what he was going to say. "IIIAAAH fuck, it's cold!" He shrieked and jumped back up on the bed with his feet in the air, causing Mongo to laugh a rumbling laughter at his friend. Caleb gave him a bemused look. "Ha ha ha, hilarious ain't I?" He laughed dryly and carefully put his feet back down on the ground. _Good thing he's easily amused... _"C'mon, Mongo, let's go out and see what people's up to..." He said and walked up to the door. Mongo hesitated and shook his head.

Caleb stopped and frowned at his giant friend. "And why not? Look, you met the Dirtonians yesterday, and they didn't seem all too scared of you, right? They're probably used to all kinds of freaks, I mean c'mon, Priscilla lives there!"

Mongo lowered his head and looked up at his friend. That wasn't why he wanted to go outside the door.

"Then what is it?!"

Mongos reply was only one word. And it was so clear that maybe even the others could have heard what it was he was saying; "Snakes"

Caleb grimaced. "Really? Because of the rattlesnakes?" Mongo nodded mutely and Caleb gave up a frustrated groan. "You HAVE to be jokin' with me! Y'know what? The Rattlesnakes won't hurt you, okay? I'm not gonna let them! You trust me, right?" Mongo nodded again. "Good, then I promise you that the Rattlesnakes won't even as much as LOOK at you! And if they do, I'll give them a piece of my mind, is that good?"

Mongo thought for a while, before grinning widely, get up from the bed and nod enthusiastically.

Caleb held back another groan. _Great, I just can't WAIT to reveal to the world that Mongo the Monster is the biggest fuckin' sissy to ever walk the face of the Earth! _

…

Another one who didn't want to leave his room was Bentley, as he was pacing back and forth in front of the door. He was occasionally casting hopeful glances at it, hoping that Priscilla would come back and tell him that he didn't have to go out if he didn't want to. But she didn't come back. A paranoid worry began to nag at him from the back of his head; maybe she was in danger? Maybe the Gajerras came back to hurt her again? What if they killed her again? Or worse, what if they...? He stopped thinking and closed his eyes shut. No. He didn't want to think of that. They couldn't do that to her, they just couldn't!

He tried to think of other things, and suddenly remembered when Priscilla told him about her meeting with his father. He couldn't help but to smile, she really had met him! But how? And why?

_And sis, maybe she's still alive?_ That thought brought a wide smile to his lips and he stopped pacing for a while. _But, what was her name again?_ He frowned as he thought. _Edna? Elvira? Ellie! No wait, she was Tobys fangirl... Tanya? Elmina? Emma? Vitani?_ He cursed quietly to himself. He had the name on the tip of his tongue, but what was it?! He was picturing her face in his mind as he tried to dig around in his memory; dark brown spots, rounded ears, brown eyes and a little wisp of hair on top of her head. Without that hairband, her hair would flow out of control and almost make her look like their uncle. Bentley couldn't help but to chuckle at that faint memory, but he soon gave up on trying to remember his sisters name and began to ponder about his father.

Priss said that he told her his name meant 'Hunter', and that was an M-word without a doubt! There was only one problem; for every year that went, he forgot more and more about his old language. The way of talking that he was taught ever since he was but a cub, was disappearing more and more. He could still speak it, as a matter of fact, if was fun to speak it since nobody had any clue what he really said! But he soon noticed that words, bits and pieces were lost by every year that went on, and he feared that he would soon have forgotten it too, along with the everyones names and faces!

Trying to bring back his fathers name to his mind, but when he thought about it, his thoughts began to trail off to his own name instead. After all, Bentley was just a temporary name, until he remembered his real one. IF he ever remembered it again, that is.

Bentley hung his head and tried biting his lip to make it stop trembling. "I-I'm sorry, dad..." He whispered lowly and put his palm against his forehead. It was still his fault, what happened. Nothing would ever change that; it was HIS idea that his sister and him would go out in the jungle in the middle of the night and search for the Spotted Ones. It was HIS fault they got caught, and taken to Captain Tip and his crew. And it was HIS fault that their father had to die, and Etana got taken away. Nothing could ever change the past, no matter how hard he laughed, or how wide his smile was, the past would still stay the same.

_But then, if I hadn't ran off, I would never have come here! _ That thought came like a second little voice, piercing through the guilt that clouded his mind. _An' if I never came here, I wouldn't have met Granny Ama, Chuck, Finn, Ellie, Toby or Lucy! I would never have met Corny either, or Lottie! Or the Baxters! Or Rosie an' Roscoe! An' I would never have met Scrange, Rango or any of the others either! An' I would NEVER have met Prissy... _He felt the guilt slowly vanishing from his mind, making him feel lighter, and happy. _An' if I never met Prissy, I would never feel the way I do now!_ The corners of Bentleys mouth was tugged up in a happy grin.

Yes, he had lost everyone, thanks to his foolishness as a kid. All his family and friends; gone, to never be able to meet them again. But instead, he had gained new ones; the other slaves and hyenas of the Aventine Farm, even the plantation owners daughter! He had both met his friends, and then he also lost most of them, but they had all taught him so many things! His father taught him to hunt and to be happy, and his sister taught him to seize the day. Corny taught him to read, write and count, the slaves on Aventine Farm taught him that a family doesn't have to be blood-related to still be a family. Bucktoothed Buck and the Baxters taught him that not all strangers are evil and scary and Lottie taught him to appreciate the nature again after he lost his belief in the Great Mother, Rosie and Roscoe taught him that being lonely wasn't always a good thing, Rango and the gang taught him the value of friends and comradeship. Priscilla had taught him to love another.

"After rain there's a rainbow, isn't that right, dad?" Bentley said quietly. He didn't know if his dad was around to hear him at the moment, but it never hurt to talk. He sometimes used to talk to his dad, in some faint hope that he might be around to listen, but he never got any answer. "I'm really sorry for what happened. I've never been able to forgive myself, an' I probably never will. But I can't say I regret anythin' now. It's just like ya said; everything happens for a reason! I've met so many people, learned so many things and seen so much. Okay, there's a LOAD of things I wished I NEVER saw too! Anyway, I know that you're probably still mad at me for runnin' off, an' draggin' my sister with me. But I still can't regret it. I just hope that you'll understand that I didn't mean to get us all into trouble, or to kill ya, but I've come too far now to wish that it never happened. Please, father, I..." He paused for a moment trying to find the right words. "I just want'cha to forgive me anyway..." He closed his eyes and hung his head, but just then he thought he saw someone standing in the corner. He quickly opened his eyes again and looked, but there were nobody there. Just darkness.

"Great, now I'm seein' things again..." Bentley mumbled and turned his head to the door. _I better go b'fore I get all too cheesy!_ He winced and reached out his hand at the handle, feeling the cool metal in his hand sent cold shivers along his spine. He took a deep breath and braced himself before he turned the handle and walked out into the hallway.

…

Jonas mumbled something and corrected the hat on his head. It was identical to his old one, except that this wasn't as well used and therefore darker in it's colors. He adjusted his hat until it sat perfectly rested on his brows and slithered out into his office.

He remembered last morning, he had just woken up as usual, did his morning routines as usual and just slithered out into the office to begin the days work, when he was met by a group of his workers; Jeff and Larry, Gringo, Bob and Wes, Jones, Burt and of course: Jet and the Gajerras. Jet had a confident grin on his face, and something told Jonas that something was up. Something bad.

His suspicions were confirmed when they all suddenly overpowered the surprised snake, holding him still against the floor. First Jet asked nicely where the key to the Valve was, but all he got in reply was a comment in very foul Swedish about his mother.

It was then Pancho drew his knife and his mouth curled up in a sadistic grin when he noticed that Jonas flinched in fright. But before the Komodo dragon could walk up to the viper and torture him for the information, Jet seemed to get an idea and stopped Pancho in his tracks.

"Take his hat instead!" The raccoon had said, and that was how Jonas lost his hat to the mutineers.

The gray viper sighed and shook his head slowly. After hearing what happened to Priss, he regretted telling Jet that Bentley was the one with the key; there was no way he would EVER get the Basement clean now! Maybe it was better to seal it off, let it purpose as a tomb for the murdered men? But that sent a shiver along the vipers long, scaly back. That meant that he'd had to work on top of a grave whenever he was in this Nest! "Yuck, gross..." He muttered and slithered out and was just about to make his way down the stairs when he noticed the mass of people that had gathered in the great hall. HIS great hall!

Jonas stood with his mouth open and just stared at the townspeople, scurrying around as they made the massive hall into some sort of rescue center. Jonas regained his ability to speak after a moment and towered over the rail. "RRAAAAANGOOOO!" He yelled, his voice bounced off the walls and attracted everyones attention.

The only one who responded to the name was the chameleon sheriff, who poked his head up through the masses. "Y-yes?" He said with a slightly nervous look on his face, but Jonas frowned and waved with his tailtip.

"Nej! Not jo! Teh real Rango!" Sheriff Rangos arm slowly pointed at the slightly bigger corridor, the one leading to Thunder Wings room. Jonas sighed. "Hes got a lott to eksplajn!" He mumbled grumpily and hurried down the stairs so the scales rustled against the ground.

…

As soon as Rango and Jake left to discuss further into the bigger corridor, Priscilla folded her arms across her chest and stomped impatiently with her foot on the ground. "Well?" She hissed. Wounded Bird sighed, knowing exactly what it was she wanted to know. "I've already heard Rangos side of the story, now I wanna hear yer! What REALLY happened to them?"

"Your parents?"

"No, my goldfishes, whaddya think!?"

Wounded Bird sighed once again. "Very well... I'd sit down if I were you, though!" He said and nodded at a few crates stacked to the side. She nodded and sat down on the closest one and raised an eyebrow at the crow, impatient to hear the story. Wounded Bird held back another tired sigh, this would be the second time in less than ten minutes that he would have to tell this story.

"When I met your parents, Priscilla, it was in the middle of the winter. As you might know, I was traveling quite a lot back then before..." He paused and glimpsed down at his leg before he cleared his throat and continued. "There came a snowstorm that caught me completely by surprise, and I would most likely have died out there if I hadn't stumbled upon Tovi and Samaras cabin. It's safe to say that those two saved my life that night, I vowed to repay them and it didn't took long for them to turn to me for help. They told me that they had been forced to flee their home, and came here hoping that things would be better. But they were wrong, and now had to leave once again. Although this time they had you to protect as well, and they were afraid that you would have to grow up being constantly on the run, so they contacted an old friend of theirs and asked him to come and pick you up, to find someplace for you to grow up happily and free from worries. They told Rango that they were both going to be dead by the time he got the letter, hoping that it would trigger him to come faster. They dug their graves as a decoy, but planned to stay until he came, so they could tell him everything but then..." He paused once again and Priss could see a clear frown between his brows. "Then THEY came... Tovi and Samara had to lay low in their cabin, so I was sent out to the nearby town to do some business for them when I met five mysterious robed men. It was hard to say what kind of animal they were, but they looked like aye-ayes as well, and apparently they were the ones Tovi and Samara were afraid of, as Samara almost became hysterical when I told them about the robed men. They decided to leave the very next night, and since I knew about them they convinced me to come along with them as well. When we later had to part ways, they left you in my care and asked me to wait for them in Fairview..." Priss' ears perked slightly when she recognized the name of the town where she had spent her first years. Although she didn't have many memories of the place. "And that's what we did, we waited for them. But that was the last time I saw them; they never showed up. We waited for them for..."

"Five years..." Priscilla said instead of him and looked down at her feet. "That's when we moved to Dirt..."

Wounded Bird nodded solemnly. "Yes."

Priss was quiet for a while, before she turned her head up again and scowled at the Crow. "I still can't believe it; ya never told me anythin' of this!" She shook her head in disbelief. "Just b'cause I never asked 'bout them? What could I have asked, I thought they were dead?!" Wounded Bird didn't respond. "What if they suddenly just came back to Dirt looking for me, what would you say then? 'Oh yeah, that's right! Remember yer parents, Priss, the ones I told ya were dead? Well, SURPRISE! They're still alive!'" Wounded Birds face was just as unfazed as before, and that only pissed Priscilla off even more. "Look, if ya got somethin' more ya haven't told me yet, NOW is the perfect time to say it!"

Wounded Bird opened his beak to say something else but just then Jonas slithered by, obviously upset. "Vhere is Rango?" He stopped and growled, swapping his glance between Wounded Bird and Priscilla.

"He an' Jake is talkin'" She answered, causing Jonas to wince.

"Najs..." He said sarcastically and glanced into the corridor. "In tere?" The two nodded. Jonas cursed and continued into the corridor.

When the viper had slithered away, Wounded Bird and Priscilla turned back to each other. Neither of them said anything as an awkward silence arose between them. "I'm sorry, Priscilla..." Wounded Bird eventually said after a while.

Priss didn't answer, she just quietly turned around and walked back out into the great hall and continued to the spot outside the stable where the rest of the gang had gathered. She didn't say anything to them when she sat down next to Sam on a wooden bench and stared blankly ahead of her, not exactly in a chatty mood.

What Wounded Bird (finally) told her literally threw her world around, and her mind was buzzing with questions. Her parents had been alive last time Wounded Bird saw them, could they still be alive today? Who were they hiding from, or what? Why didn't they return to Fairview, was it because they were dead? Or maybe they willingly left her with an old indian simply because they just didn't want her at all? That last thought made her ball her fists, clenching them so hard her wounded shoulder began to hurt and her fingernail dug into her palm.

Priss shook the thought of her parents out of her head and looked at the townspeople. She knew the name of everyone she saw, she even knew where most of them lived and how much time they all spent at the saloon, hell, she even knew what shoe-size they wore! When she and Wounded Bird arrived to Dirt, she was too small to remember it. But she had grown up with these people, the entire town had taken her in and she grew up as one of those girls who'd rather hang out with boys than other girls. Less drama and more mischief.

She couldn't help but to chuckle when she thought of the gang she always hanged around with; Mordecai, William, Gary and of course; Richard DeGato, the self-proclaimed leader of their little group. Her faint smile vanished when she remembered that Richard had been one of them Rango shot. She closed her eyes and started grinding her teeth. Rango. She had almost forgot about everything he had done, everyone he murdered... She cursed both Rango and herself, for forgetting about it and even starting to consider Rango as her friend! But she knew how she managed to forget about it: Bentley.

Somehow, Bentley always managed to get her to forget everything bad that's happened, and just have fun at the moment. She knew that he himself wasn't all 100% happy-go-lucky, as he claimed to be, but he had managed to make her laugh, even at his worst jokes!

"Umm, Priscilla?" Sams sudden voice next to her made her flinch and blink at him in surprise. The young, short bobcat nervously scratched the back of his head. "Eh, I was just gonna ask, is Bentley okay?"

She couldn't answer for a while, just the fact that Sam just spoke to her AND seemed concerned about Bentley made her mute with shock. She managed to snap out of it and nodded. "Yeah, h-he said he would come after a while." Sam nodded and then continued with being his normal, quiet self.

He was still thinking of what had happened to Bentley and Priscilla, and he just kept thinking that it might have been his fault. He had wished that something would've happened to Priscilla, so Bentley knew what it was like to lose someone you loved, but he never actually thought it would come true! He couldn't help but to draw a deep sigh; you really had to be careful with what you wish for, huh?

"Uh, hi there, fellas!" Sheriff Rangos voice made them all turn around and frown skeptically. None in the gang thought especially highly of the sheriff, probably the other Rangos attitude which had rubbed off on them. The gang of bountyhunters looks made Rango stagger back slightly for a moment, before he cleared his throat and straightened up, regaining the proud posture of a sheriff and decided to stick his thumbs into his belt for emphasis. "Me an' a couple of others would just like to have a word with my deputy there, if that's alright with y'all?"

Priscilla held back a gulp and flickered her eyes to the ground, before getting up from the bench and follow the sheriff back to the other side of the hall. "Umm, sheriff Rango?" She asked carefully as they walked. "Why're ev'ryone here? What's happened to Dirt?" She's had that question in her mind ever since she saw that Dirts entire population had taken their refuge here.

One of Rangos eyes moved to the side so he looked at her, at the same time as he kept his other eye focusing on the path ahead. "That's one of the things we'd like to talk to ya 'bout?" He answered, earning a confused frown from Priss.

"We?" She repeated, and almost stopped walking when she saw who he meant; Beans, Buford, Elgin, Spoons, Waffles, Sergeant Turley, Willy, Woodrow, Gus, the gang from Dry Creek and the all the others were waiting for them. Some, like Thomas, Woodrow and Elgin, had an impatient scowl on their faces, and made Priss look down at the ground with the feeling of guilt heavy in her chest. "Of course..."

…

Jonas appeared just when Rango and Jake were heading back for the great hall to announce the truce and reveal the deal they just made. Jonas glanced up at the much larger rattlesnake before turning to Rango with an angry frown.

"VHAT are all those peopels doing in teh Nest?!" The viper clenched his jaw and glared at Rango.

Rango replied by shrugging. "Hell, don't look at me, buddy! I was just as surprised by seein' them as ya!"

"Get. Them. Ut. Off. HERE!"

"Sorry, we can't do that" Jake replied with a slow shake of his head. "They've been forced outta their town by Jet. Comin' here was their only choice, considerin' they've got women an' children along"

"But don't worry, as soon as we git rid off Jet, they'll go back to their town an' won't trouble ya no more!" Rango added with a grin.

Jonas snorted unimpressed and cocked his head. "Vi?"

"Yeah, we. Ya see, me an' Jake have been talkin' an' we've agreed on a truce, in exchange we'll help Jake an' his family to help the Dirtonians git their town back! You're in on it too, aren'tcha?"

"Jo hav GOTT to be kidding me?"

"It includes a revenge on Jet an' the other mutineers?" Jake tilted his head.

Jonas head perked in suddenly changed interest. "Vhen do vi start?"

Rango snickered. "We'll have to wait for Bentley first, he's the strategist, r'member? I ain't doin' nothin' without that guy pullin' the strings!" Jake couldn't help but to throw a skeptical frown at the bountyhunter. Rango noticed it and crossed his arms. "Say what ya want 'bout that man, but there's a lot to him than ya think! So far, none of his plans has ever gone to hell while mine seem to fail whatever I do. I think ya should wipe that disbelivin' look off yer face, Jake, an' just trust me on this one, 'kay?" Jake rolled his eyes and Rango nodded shortly. "That's better!"

**Okidokey, that's it for this time ;), hopefully, next chapter will be up the 19th because that marks the ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY FOR SWG ASDKJSFFVGJIVFGGHS :D!**


	55. Pick your side

**One year ago, when I started this fic, I would NEVER have thought that I still would be writing it, OR that anyone actually would read it. Now we're on chapter 55; it's still going strong, and I'm just sitting here all: "Wtf just happened o_O?" **

**I'm not sure what to say really, other than a huge "THANKS Y'ALL!" to everyone who's reading this (reading this automatically makes you the most awesome person on Earth, btw) :D! Gosh, a year with these guys has been... insane, to say the least o_o! But everyones awesome reviews and continued support is literally what's kept me going with this. And not to mention all the awesome people I've met purely thanks to this fic (you know who you are ;) )!**

**Anyways, I'm NOT gonna get all sappy here, so I just wanna say "thanks a ton!" to everyone here and let's get goin' with this chappie, right?**

***** Chapter Fifty-five : Pick Your Side *****

Beans tried to hold back a gasp when she saw what a mess Priscilla was in; two long scratches along her cheek on one side, and a deep gash on her other temple. She also had her right arm in a sling, limping slightly and she wore completely different clothes that looked to be too large for her; a gray longsleeve sweater and a pair of light pants. Not to mention there was something different about her and her attitude since last time Beans saw her, but she just couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Priss noticed Beans shocked and slightly worried expression and looked away, as she and sheriff Rango approached the gang from Dirt. She was mentally preparing herself to get mercilessly questioned by the others, especially the two lawmen from Diego City. They looked like they were about to erase her existence by just looking at her!

"Woah! What's happened to ya?!" Waffles exclaimed as soon as he saw all the flaws, especially staring at her arm.

She blinked in confusion before she realized what he was talking about and let out a nervous laugh. "Oh, these? Nah, I've just been attacked by a giant, shot two times by the Gajerra brothers an' stepped on a knife. It's nothin', really!" She said with a sheepish smile. Nobody said anything in response, but glances were exchanged among the others. The silence that arose felt awkward, and Priss began to fumble with her hands.

To save them from further silence, Rango cleared his throat and got everyones attention. "Well, Priscilla..." When she heard her name, she looked up from her hands and at the chameleon sheriff. "We've got some questions for you to answer, but I bet you're wondering what happened to the town, considering everyones presence here, so we're going to tell you everything first!"

"Lemme guess, Jet an' his men managed to kick y'all out, huh?" Priscilla said, more of a statement than a question, and folded her arms across her chest.

"It's sounds even worse if ya put it like that..." Elgin mumbled and lowered his head so the brim of his tattered hat covered his face.

"Yeah, that's more or less what happened" Beans said with a clenched jaw. "We were waitin' fer the posse to return when a coon n' two strange lizards rode into town. Or two of them were ridin', the second lizard was walkin'. They told us to hand over the entire town to them an' when we refused, they attacked. There were suddenly so many of them, an' they were armed to their teeth, so we didn't have any choice but to begin to hide an' dodge to not git ourselves killed. But then, the explosions came. They had some sort of canons an' the must've hid some dynamite 'round the town, b'cause buildin's n' houses were bein' completely leveled to the ground!" Beans paused for a few beats. "They said they wanted our town, but to git it they were practically destroyin' it in the process!"

Waffles nodded in agreement with his big, red eyes. "Yeah, yeah! An' then th'water broke!" Everyone went silent once again and just frowned at him. "What?" The little horned toad looked around at the everyone staring at him, completely oblivious.

"What he meant to say is that when an explosion went off in front of the mayors office, the ground cracked..." Buford said solemnly and turned his head back to face Priss. "The ground just opened up an' split the town in two, like the entrance to hell itself! But unlike hell, it wasn't fire an' demons that erupted from the crack..." Priss bit her lip, she could already tell where this were going. "It was water! Tons an' tons of it!"

"Straight outta nowhere!" Willy added. "Wonder how them fellas did it anyway? I mean, all that water couldn't have just appeared like that?"

Priss let out a guilty sigh and hung her head. "I know where the water came from..." She said lowly, and everyones heads snapped to her in surprise. She told them everything about the underground lake she forgot to tell them before and when she was done, Woodrow was the first to speak.

"Why didn'tcha tell us all that b'fore?" He said with a growl hinted in his voice.

"B'cause I forgot!" Priscilla answere without skipping a beat. "I was just so worried, I wasn't thinkin' 'bout it at the time..."

Beans tilted her head. "What were ya so worried 'bout?"

Priss flinched and bit her lip again. Rango and the others in the posse, except for the Dry Creek gang, knew what it was, and Rango tilted his head as well.

"I-I was worried 'bout a friend!" She answered after a moment of hesitation. "I-it's a bit complicated, but ev'ryone told me Bentley had seen me gettin' shot by the Gajerras, an' I was worried that he might overreact an' maybe hurt someone..."

"Hurt someone?" Gus snorted. "Overreact my ass, I heard that deadgum psycho butchered a whole room of people! Includin' OUR posse!" The old jackrabbits whiskers twitched; neither he or Woodrow had any plans on letting their old possemembers walk away unpunished for betraying them, but nobody deserved to meet that kind of end! When they had heard that even their posse was among the massacred men, they instantly wanted Bentley to get lynched on the spot! Luckily the entire gang of outlaws stood between them and the hyena, and now when they've had some rest over the matter, they've calmed down and decided to bring him to a court, just like with the bountyhunter and the others.

She gritted her teeth to keep herself from lashing out at the older deputy. "But he didn't mean to, mr McCrae!" She answered and frowned when Thomas let out a cackling laughter.

"Oh, sure he didn't! I've heard 'bout what he's done, an' anyone want my opinion? That guy's not only a psycho, he's THE psycho!" The cockroach chuckled and tapped a claw on one of his four hands on his forehead. "He's missin' somethin' up here alright, somethin' crucial!"

Priscilla growled silently, but managed to keep calm. Rango noticed his deputys reaction, and a nervous 'Uh-oh' flashed in his mind. "Get off his case will ya, Thomas? He feels really bad 'bout it, an' he really doesn't need anyone...!" She said with a restrained voice, but got interrupted by the bad-tempered roach.

"Wait, he feels bad 'bout it?! So, lemme get this straight; he doesn't feel bad 'bout the lives he an' his friends ended when they ruled Dirt? He doesn't feel bad for humiliatin' ev'ryone by pullin' all those lame pranks an' officially made fools outta me an' the other guys? He doesn't feel bad for all that destruction him an' his friends caused, an' neither does he feel bad for bein' an obnoxious lil' prick. But he feels bad for killin' a bunch of lowlife smugglers an' backstabbin' possemember?" Thomas shook his head in disbelief. "An' you're swoonin' over this guy, lassie?! I've got a name for guys like him, y'know, an' that word is; asshole... HEY!" He had barely finished the sentence when Priscilla charged at him, grabbing him by the filthy gray scarf around his neck and threw him down on his back.

"Just SHUT UP, Thomas!" She snarled and held his scarf in a grip tight enough to make her knuckles turn white. "Ya don't talk 'bout him like that! Ya should just SHUT the hell UP b'fore I crack yer skull like a nut against a rock! He ain't no asshole, ya asshole! An' ya got NO IDEA what kind of hell he's been...!" She trailed off when she heard the clicking sound of revolvers being drawn and aimed at her. "... Through..."

Rango quickly jumped in between Gus and Woodrows guns and nervously waved his hands. "Woah there, gentlemen!" He said, trying to steer the conversation back on track. "We're here to talk to her, not shoot her! Priscilla, do you think you could stop threatening Thomas and get back up? We've still got some questions to ask!" Priss hesitated before she reluctantly let go of the shocked cockroach and got back up on her feet. "Thank you!" Rango nodded and shot a quick look at the two lawmen from Diego City, silently telling them to put down their guns.

They holstered their guns again and narrowed their eyes at Priscilla. She noticed that everyone was staring at her now again, which made her turn uneasily. "Sorry... I just..."

"Geez, you're just crazy as him, ain'tcha?" Thomas mumbled as he got back up on the chair and glared in disbelief at her.

Priss' felt one of her eyes twitch, but then she grinned smugly and tilted her head upwards at the roach. "Yeah, what if I am?" She answered and got an arched eyebrow from pretty much everyone around in response.

"Does that mean you're on their side in this?" Woodrow said harshly and narrowed his eyes.

Priss flinched and looked at Rango from the corner of her eye. Rango cleared his throat and averted his eyes for a second before turning back to her. "Yeah, that were one of the things we really must know, where do you stand in all this?"

"B'cause we're gonna take our town back, with or without'cha!"

"Yeah, you're still our deputy, ain'tcha?"

"Why did'cha even leave us in the first place?!"

"Is it true that ya left the town just b'cause of that guy?"

"So ya think a simple outlaw is more important than yer town?!"

She didn't even get the chance to talk as their questions keep hailing over her, no matter if she tried to drown out the townspeople, someone else always piped up. Soon, their questions began to sound almost like accusations, and she let out a frustrated sigh as she buried his face in the palm of her hand. Rango saw her troubled position and held up his hands at the townspeople.

"Quiet down everybody, for petes sake!" He said, even he himself was surprised over how harsh his voice suddenly got. "Just let her get some room to talk, okay?" He said and gave Priss a wink to go on.

She mimed a silent 'thanks' before facing back to the others. She drew a deep sigh before she slowly shook her head, causing the men to mumble in puzzlement. "Look, I don't know what happened myself, really! I don't know even know what I'm doin' any more...!" She began to speak, but got interrupted by a low growl from Woodrow.

"You're turnin' yer back on yer folks, THAT'S what you're doin'!" He said and some of the townspeople around them began to nod and murmur in agreement.

"That's a bloody lie!" Priscilla snapped without hesitation and glared at the old prairie dog. "Yes, I did leave the town b'hind. Yes, I left with a gang of outlaws for some reason, but I never intended to turn my back on ev'ryone! I wanna stand on yer side in this, but I... I just can't!"

"Why not?" This time it was Rango who exclaimed in surprise.

Priscilla went quiet once again, hesitating before answering. "B-b'cause..." She stopped and sighed. _I'm gonna regret this..._ "B'cause I fell in love with one of them, okay?" For the last time, the others who had gathered went completely silent again. They couldn't do anything else but to gawk in shock at her, and their looks made her squirm uneasily. "C-can I go now?" She asked, hoping that they didn't have any more questions.

"Actually..." Rango answered carefully. "We DO have some things we'd like to ask you 'bout..."

"Just leave" Woodrow interrupted the other sheriff and motioned with his head for Priss to leave. He didn't have to tell her twice before she scurried away from the townspeople. "I don't think she's too keen on revealin' anythin' 'bout her new friends anyway..." He added lowly.

"So, at least we now know for sure the reason why she left..." Beans said as soon as Priss got out of earshot.

"I already told'cha, sheriff..." Woodrow said and raised an eyebrow at Rango, who turned to Woodrow with a mixed expression on his face. "If I were ya, I'd start lookin' for a new deputy. Don't count on her to come back!" He said with a nod at Priscilla, who had stopped by the stairs to the upper floor and leaned her back against the railing with her face buried in one of her hands.

Rango opened his mouth to protest, but couldn't find the right words and closed it again. His eyes flicked to his old deputy, who hadn't moved an inch from the spot, and sighed heavily. The older sheriff was right; the chances of Priscilla coming back were slim to none. And that was just confirmed even more when he saw Bentley arrive into the hall, instantly spot Priscilla by the stairs and trotted over to her.

When she noticed the hyenas presence she lifted her head and looked up at him with a sad look on her face, which seemed to trouble him and he put one of his arms around her, careful to not brush against her wounded shoulder. He asked her something but she didn't answer, just simply leaned her head against him and threw a sad glance at the townspeople, as if she could feel that Rango was watching her. Rango hurried to avert his eyes and lowered his head so the brim of his light tan hat covered the top part of his face for a couple of beats.

"Alright then, back to Dirt it is!" He said and turned back to his townspeople and allies, hoping to change the subject. The silence quickly grew awkward as he let his eyes wander over the gathering of rugged men, and women! "Aaaanyone's got any suggestions?" He said after a moment of silence, desperately trying to draw out a response of any kind from the others.

"I've got one; sit down, shut up an' leave this business to us men, alright?" A creepily familiar voice said harshly behind him, and the sheriff nervously gulped and turned around. The bountyhunter came walking towards them, the dark gray poncho was thrown over his shoulder, revealing the two black belts girdled around his hips and the two silver shining, black handled revolvers in their holsters.

For some reason, sheriff Rango felt a strange twinge of fear whenever he met the other Rango. Maybe because he was the REAL Rango, the Jenkins brothers bane; the legend everyone was talking about. When the non-suspecting chameleon saw the word at the bottom of the bottle of cactus juice and held his thumb over the first 'Du', he would never have imagined that the name 'Rango' already had been taken, and not just by anyone; but by a notorious bountyhunter, a cold blooded murdered who would stop at nothing to get the bastard on the Wanted-poster. A man just as renowned in the West as the Grim Reaper himself. And the sheriff had made himself his enemy by stealing HIS name and boast about HIS deeds! That, and he looked really creepy the way he narrowed his bright, yellow eyes at someone he was mad at, like sheriff Rango.

The townspeople quickly scrambled with their guns at the sight of the other Rango and Beans eyes flashed angrily as her grip around the shotgun hardened. Behind the bountyhunter, Jake came slithering and shot a warning glance at the townspeople, Rango himself didn't seem to care about the weapons being aimed at him as he came to halt a few steps away from sheriff Rango. Jake slithered up next to him and lowered his head so he got in the same eyelevel as the others.

"We've been discussin', an' we've come to a conclusion" Jake said with his dark, hissing voice and his eyes swept over the townspeople. "I'll aid ya in yer battle with Jet, an' my family will help too! As well as Rango an' his outlaws, they're willin' to help on one condition!" At first, a hopeful grin spread on most faces, but that grin was soon replaced by shock and skepticism as they glared at the bountyhunter in disbelief. "They'll help if they are promised to get pardoned once Longway is securely b'hind bars!"

"I see what you're thinkin', an' ya should know my men didn't respond well to our news either!" The bountyhunter hurried to say with his hands up in an innocent gesture when the faces in the group turned into masks of rage, and loud protests were heard from certain individuals.

"We ain't promisin' 'em nothin' but a bullet between their eyes or a rope 'round their necks!" Gus barked loudly and shook his head.

Rango averted his eyes to Jake and raised a meaning eyebrow at the fellow outlaw. Jake growled, ignored the bountyhunters look and leaned his head closer to the two lawmen from Diego City. "Too bad, b'cause I just promised 'em that!" He hissed with his red eyes locked on the older jackrabbit.

"We don't need their help!" A random voice spoke up from the group of Townspeople, and an agreeing murmur arose from the people. "Them fellers ain't brought nothin' but pain to our town!"

"I hate to break it to ya, buddy, but yer town ain't unique; ya have no idea what I've done in the past!" Rango said with an annoyed roll of his eyes. "An' I see you're tryin' to come up with the most painful way to finish me off, Mr Edwards? Well, if it's to any comfort: yer son ain't the only kid I've shot!" The bountyhunter added with a nod to Mr Edwards, the kangaroo mouse was sitting on a chair and leaned one of his elbows against a table, glaring menacingly and grinding his teeth at him. He didn't reply.

"Don't be stupid!" Jake spat and didn't even notice that his younger siblings had become drawn to the ruckus and slithered over, with Mattie holding a hand on Jolenes scales while she followed the two rattlesnakes around everywhere they went. "Do any of ya know how to fight these guys then? Does anyone here know how to defeat Longway, huh? An'one got the slightest idea how to handle this guy?"

"Hell, he's just like any other outlaw!" Thomas exclaimed with an annoyed twitch of his jaws. "What's the difference, really?"

"What differs Jet from other outlaws is that he's the sneakiest, slimiest bastard ever to put his reekin' foot on these lands" Rango the bountyhunter said solemnly in return before anyone had the time to open their mouths. "He's not like others, he's a manipulative fella, who likes to study his opponent for a weak spot, b'fore hittin' it. Hard! Take Bentley for instance..." He paused to throw a quick glance at his companion, who seemed to try to seek cover behind Priss when their eyes met. "Jet knew he had a soft spot for lil' Miss Deputy over there, so when he wanted information outta him, he tried by threatenin' Priscilla. Of course it didn't go as planned, since Bentley is... Well, Bentley!"

"An' what has this to do our town?" Beans asked with a low growl and narrowed her eyes.

"Simple, tots; probably by usin' some similar strategy, he managed to convert over 50 men to his side. Men who used to be loyal to my friend Jonas. Ya might've noticed, but these fifty men are armed with all sorts of firepower, from rifles an' revolvers to frickin' canons an' gasoline! An' as for yer weak spot, I'm guessin' it was when ya were without the lawmen he attacked, right?" A silent murmur went through the crowd, and Rango took that as a 'yes'. "With the help of an insane amount of firepower, an' without the sheriffs an' their deputies to organize y'all, he just simply waltzed in an' claimed the town?"

"That an' the earth opened up an' drenched the entire town" Buford said with a flat voice.

"Well, I'll be damned! The underground lake, huh? Anyway, the reason he's taken yer town is so he can make a profit outta the water, but I reckon y'all already know that! An' somehow he even managed to brainwash the Gajerra brothers to join him! How on Earth he succeeded with that is a mystery of epic proportions! An' with those two on his side, he's practically unstoppable, but we've got one thing he hasn't!"

"An' what would that be?" Gus snorted skeptically and crossed his arms.

The bountyhunter didn't answer, he just grinned slyly and turned his head back to Bentley and Priscilla. "The hyena?" Jolene exclaimed in surprise and tilted her head at the said hyenas way. It wasn't until now both Jake and Rango noticed that the two younger Rattlesnakes were there as well. "But ain't he the crazy guy who killed loads of people?!"

"Will the two of ya stop movin' so quietly?!" The basilisk lizard hissed and almost staggered back. "I almost got a heart attack here!"

"Aww, just almost?" Jolene said and tilted her head to one side innocently, but her narrowed, angry eyes revealed her real feelings.

"He keeps tellin' me to trust the hyena, an' I guess we ain't got much of a choice..." Jake said and suspiciously glanced down at the lizard.

"The hell ya don't!" Rango nodded in agreement and ignored Jolenes comment.

"Well, we still ain't wantin' yer help, bountyhunter!" Woodrow spat. "We don't even want any of ya 'round!"

"Well life's a bitch, ain't it, ol' boy?" He answered and stubbornly crossed his arms. "We don't wanna help ya, an' ya don't want our help. At least we've got somethin' in common! But no matter how much it pains me to say this; me an' my men can't take all of Jet's men on ourselves, we're too few. An' you guys might have the right number, but ya have no experience with this guy; no matter how ya twist or turn it we HAVE to join forces!" He unfolded his arms and held up his hands in front of him. "An' don't worry: we'll be outta yer lives as soon as Jet's six feet down! So it's a deal then? Don't worry 'bout the plans, we'll handle that part! All y'all have to do is shut up an' follow orders! Now, if you'll excuse me?" Without waiting for a reply, the bountyhunter spun around and walked over to the staircase.

"Don't even think 'bout it, Jo..." Jake growled warningly when he saw that his sister narrowed her eyes at the black clad lizards back and ran her rattle over the hollow handle of her gun. She looked at him with a slightly confused look, but she didn't get the chance to ask him why until Thomas spoke up:

"Alright ya big scaly maracas; what have ya done now?" The cockroach said, without thinking that he just might have insulted the Grim Reaper.

"I just guaranteed our victory, bug!" Jake hissed in return and turned a big, hellfire colored eye to the roach. "None of ya insects touches those men 'til we're done..." He averted his eyes to his two siblings. "An' the same goes fer ya two too! If I see or hear that any of ya killed any of 'em, I'll end yer lives in a very painful way, got that?!" Jolene and Blake both rolled their eyes in response.

Sheriff Rango winced and watched the bountyhunter leave them. The sheriff didn't deny for one second that he'd rather have him and his goons on their side, yet he couldn't help but to feel uneasy at the thought that they were from now on allies. He didn't like the idea, but hey! They did have a point; they HAD to team up in order to even have a chance at winning! The chameleon shuddered and his skin involuntarily got a much paler tone. He had listened to the stories about the Gajerras, but didn't believe that they were more than tall tales until now! And if they were on the enemys side in this brawl?

_Lord have mercy on us all..._

…

Bentley saw that the lizard in black were headed straight for them and immediately turned his head down to Priscilla, who still had that troubled look on her face. "Prissy?" He said and got her to look up from the ground. "Umm... W-whaddya say we leave this place or somethin'? Maybe for a couple of hours, or weeks! Weeks are okay too! Months would be even better! I know, we could stay in the aquifer maybe? For a couple of, oh I dunno, years?"

She looked at him with her head tilted to the side in a puzzled fashion before she noticed Rango being headed their way. "Stop bein' so worried, ya know he ain't gonna kick ya out or anythin'!" She said and nudged his side with her elbow.

"That's easy for you to say..." He mumbled in response and watched nervously as the lizard came to a stop in front of the two. Priss could feel him getting tense and the arm around her tightened its hold. She sighed and rolled her eyes at him.

"G'mornin' buddy! Priss, I take it the ol' indian told'cha the story as well?" Rango said, earning a nod from Priss as an answer. "Now, I'd first like to have a word with Bentley, alone! If ya don't mind?"

Priss nodded a second time and slipped out of Bentleys arms to return to the gang again. She turned her head and saw his slightly panicky face and winked reassuringly before she turned her back to the two. Bentley watched as she returned to the rest of the outlaws, avoiding the townspeople as much as she could, before he averted his eyes to the bountyhunter. When he saw the solemn look on Rangos face, his ears instantly drooped.

"So, care to tell me what happened yesterday?" Rango asked and slightly arched an eyebrow.

Bentley was silent for a while. "I-I don't know..." He answered with a faint shrug and averted his eyes. "But I'm sorry. I'm really sorry!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know that!" The lizard said with a wave of his hand. "Can ya recall anythin' from yer lil'... Umm, freakout?"

"Every second of it..."

"Good!"

"... Good?"

"Well, I didn't mean good like that, I meant it in a... well... Oh hell, never mind! Anyway, can ya recall if it Jones is among the... deceased down there?"

Bentley thought for a couple of beats before nodding slowly. "Yeah, Jonesy is there and..." His face suddenly grew pale when he remembered that it had been the skink lizard in question that he had used in his little 'ventriloquist number'. "Oh god, Jonesy! I... I..." He stuttered and placed his hand on his forehead. "Rango, I...!"

Rango held up a hand in front of Bentley. "I don't wanna know, buddy!" He said and shook his head. "Do ya know if he had any keys?"

"Why?"

"B'cause Jones was a weapon enthusiast of epic proportions, he has a humongous rifle cabinet in his room an' when I checked it yesterday I noticed it was locked. If we're lucky, Jet haven't cleansed it out. That would mean more weapons for us, an' we need all the firepower we can get our hands on!"

"Oh... Hmm, he might have..." Bentley looked straight at Rango, fear playing over his face as he took a staggering step back. "Oh hell no! I ain't goin' back there again! Nope! No siree!" He said and shook his head violently.

"Don't worry, I'll go down there myself!" Rango cocked his head to the side and narrowed his eyes at the much taller hyena. "Now, I'd really like to now what the hell ya were thinkin' yesterday! I knew ya could git violent at very rare occasions, but if I knew that you'd be capable of massacrin' almost twenty men without gettin' a single scratch yourself, I'd send a god damn exorcist on yer ass faster than a bullet! No bad meant, but really? I've never ever HEARD 'bout anyone doin' somethin' even remotely similar to THAT!"

"I-I'm sorry, Rango... I didn't mean to... I was just so..." He discontinued and averted his eyes once again. "Ya know how it is, right?"

Rango flinched. "What?"

"When ya see the one ya care 'bout the most get shot right in front of ya?"

"Y-yeah... Maybe that... But I didn't go on a homicidal rampage for it!... Okay, maybe I did, but that was different!" Rango sighed and lowered his head. "How many of ya know?"

"Just me, Hicks an' Coral..."

"Good... Enough 'bout that!" The black clad lizard looked up again and crossed his arms. "We're gonna team up with the Dirtonians to git back at Jet, an' YOU are in charge of the plans!"

Bentley looked up as well and frowned. "Me? Why?"

"B'cause I say so!" He leaned closer and whispered. "An' I've promised Jake you'll be able to come up with a fail-safe plan"

"Oh, great! An' please note the sarcasm!"

…

A couple of hours later they had all gathered in the 'saloon'; the three sheriffs and Beans, Jonas, Rango, Hicks, Bentley and Priscilla, since Bentley refused to gather with the others without her. She couldn't do anything else but to roll her eyes at his childishness and follow them into the eastern com. room. Even two of the Rattlesnakes were present: Jolene and Jake. Jolene lay rolled up in a bun next to Priscilla, a few steps away from the tables around which the men, and Beans, were discussing.

Bentley was nervously rolling his thumbs as he felt the others looks on him, making him even more nervous. Ever since he had arrived there with Priss, the looks he had gotten from the 'good guys' had been skeptical and wary. Woodrow was even fingering at his revolver, ready to draw if the hyena would try to snap again.

"So, whaddya got buddy?" Rango said and slammed his palm on the table next to Bentley, making him jump high in surprise.

"Huh? Oh! Yeah, a plan! Umm... Well... I..." He said cautiously and let his eyes nervously wander about the table, at everyones impatient and suspicious glares. "I-I've been thinkin', since I noticed Jet had taken the liquidoline as well..."

"Liquidoline? What?" Louie exclaimed and frowned in confusion. "What in tarnation is THAT?"

Jonas sighed and rolled his eyes. "He means gasolin. Its a flammabel likvid the humans use for a lott of things"

"No, I meant liquidoline!" Bentley protested with a frown. "It ain't a gas if it's a liquid! So why call it GASoline when it's proper name should be LIQUIDoline?!"

Jolene raised a questioning brow and leaned her head down to Priss' height. "Yo, girl. No offense, but yer boyfriend? He's kinda weird, ain't he?" She asked and glanced down at the young aye-aye.

Priscilla couldn't help but to chuckle in response. "Ya ain't seen nothin' yet!"

Woodrow impatiently gritted his teeth. "Is this some kind of joke to ya?"

"That's a really dumb question, sir Chipmunkthing, EVERYTHIN' is a joke to me!"

"Just spill yer so-called 'plan', hyena!"

Bentley snorted. "Fine! Well, umm, as I said; I've been thinkin' an' I think I've come up with a plan!" He winced and lowered his head. "But it's a pretty risky plan, there's a risk it might fail. An' if it fails, it'll fail spectacularly! But it's a plan!"

"Spill it, buddy!" Rango the bountyhunter said with a curious nod.

"Everyone's heard 'bout The Burnin' of Rome, right?"

**Once again, I just can't thank y'all enough for reading this :D! I know I've still got some people here who has been reading SWG already from the early beginning (Yes, I'm looking at you, Stony!) and THAT is really frickin' awesome! But of course, everyones support has meant so ridiculously much to me during this (insane) year that's passed, that I just can't find the right words for it!**

**GRRAAAH! I wish I could just hug y'all, but I can't so I'll just have to hug the screen instead ;_;... **

…

**Ahum, anyway, we'll be back in the next chapter, hopefully it won't take long 'til then ^^"... See y'all then~!**

**Delilah OUT! (That's right, these things are back! MWAHAHAHAHAAA!)**


	56. Sore loser?

**Alright leaving the one-year jubilee behind, let us just continue with the next chappie, 'aight ;)?**

***** Chapter Fifty-six : Sore Loser? *****

**In Dirt...**

Repeated soft thuds were heard all the way outside the large, round tent, where Jet was methodically ramming his head against the center beam. With his back to the doorway stood Bill, and patiently waited with his stocky arms crossed, next to him stood a short, stout jackrabbit with drooping ears and twitching nose. Meanwhile the two Gajerras were sitting on each chair next to a worn and chipped table, which once stood in the saloon, grinding their sharp teeth at the monotone banging noise.

"Y'know, ya got one big thing in common with th'bountyhunter..." Francisco said with a restrained hiss, trying his best to not order his brother to cut the racoons throat just to silence that infernal banging. But then again, that sleaze would probably fail with that to... "Neither of ya can take a plan goin' down th'shitter, n' neither of ya seem t'care 'bout plan B's"

Finally, Jet stopped banging his head against the beam and slowly turned to the Komodo dragon with a surprisingly cool and emotionless expression on his face. "I'm not a sore loser, I'm thinking. Of course, I wouldn't have had to think of something if you two screwheads hadn't completely fucked everything up!"

"EY, watch it, fluffy!" Pancho snarled and stood up from his chair so hastily it fell backwards on the earth floor. "Open yer trap like that again an' I'll string ya up in yer own guts!"

Jet scoffed at Panchos threat. "Yeah, sure, go ahead. You couldn't even kill a little rodent girl!"

Without a reply, Pancho drew his large knife and took a couple of angry steps towards the raccoon, who in turn took a few frightened steps back. But Pancho didn't make it all the way over to Jet before Francisco too stood up and stopped his brother with a snarl. Pancho wouldn't hesitate one second to make the raccoon beg for his sorry life, but if he did, Francisco would've been a huge pain in the ass. He wanted to stick around for a while, just to see what would happen, before he would allow his brother to finish Jet off in whatever gruesome way he pleased.

Jet stood still for a few beats before turning his head to the side and saw Bad Bill and his companion, still standing there with an eyebrow arched at the three men. "Ya still here?" Jet snorted in an accusing tone, indirectly blaming them for the bad news.

When Bad Bill and his men returned from their mission to bring back Mongo the monster, but WITHOUT the monster, Jet instantly knew that they were the bringer of bad news; Priscilla was still alive and well, along with the rest of the escapees. And as if that wasn't bad enough, she had reunited with Rango and his gang, who ALSO managed to survive! Now, they had gathered the entire town of Dirt on their side as well, including the three Rattlesnakes. Jet knew something was coming his way. He didn't know exactly what, only that it would be really troublesome when it did!

"Obviously!" The jackrabbbit replied dryly instead of Bill.

"Well, don't be! Get lost! But stay around the area, I'll call for you when I might have use for you!" The raccoon said with a nonchalant wave of his hand. Bill was quietly glaring back at the raccoon, before he turned on the spot and walked out, shortly followed by the short jackrabbit. Jet turned his head to the Gajerras. "And you too, vamoose!"

Pancho growled angrily, but Francisco whacked him in the back of his head with his hand and nodded for them to leave. The Komodo dragon threw one last homicidal look at the raccoon, before he followed his brother out in the sun. Neither of them said anything, they just walked down the alley to the main street, which was still covered with ankle-deep water.

"I don't git it..." Pancho muttered bitterly after a while.

"There's a shitload of stuff ya don't git, Pan"

"Shut yer trap! I was talkin' 'bout back there, that rainbow-colored twat! I know ya can't stand 'im either, an' I know ya wanna see 'im dead, so WHY th'hell are ya always stoppin' me!?" He gritted his fangs at his brother. "I would've done it back then, I would've! But ya always tell me t'calm the fuck down n' ya always stop me from guttin' that bastard up! I ain't gonna be patient fer that much longer, brother!"

"I know ya don't wanna wait, Pan. You're way to short-minded for that, but there's one more thing I wanna know. THEN ya can have a go at 'im, n' make him look like a god damn inside out cyst if ya wanna!"

"An' what is that then?"

Francisco didn't answer, he just grinned to himself. "What's th'deal, Pan?" He suddenly said with a low growl and looked at his brother from the corner of his icy blue eyes.

"What?" The brother answered in an equally hostile town and turned his head slightly.

"I know ya don't have the poor eyesight people rumor 'bout, 'cuz then I'd have it too, an' nobody, not ev'n you, could miss from that distance..."

"Are ya bringin' that up 'gain, Franko?!" Pancho instantly hissed and turned his attention back to the road they were walking on, enjoying when the men the met averted their eyes and took the long way around him and his brother.

"I'm just so surprised, n' 'barrassed I might add. Ya never hesitated to kill 'nyone b'fore, why th'sudden change o' 'eart, brother?"

"Look, I admit it: I screwed up! Okay? Now drop it! Next time I see that lil' bitch I'll make up fer't 'thousand times over!"

Francisco chuckled grimly. "Y'know, if I didn't know better, I'd think that ya...Oh..." Suddenly his voice trailed off and he stopped dead in his tracks. Pancho stopped as well and looked back at his brother with a puzzled frown.

"What? If ya didn't know better ya'd think I what?"

"Ya takin' a fancy to th'Miss, aint'cha?" Franciscos cold eyes narrowed. "That's why, ain't it? Ya didn't let me kill 'er 'cuz ya been growin' 'tached to 'er!"

"Bullshit! I ain't fancin' ova sum wannabe-sheriffs lil' bitch!" Pancho barely let Francisco finish the sentence before he snapped his reply. "Besides, YOU'RE th'one who wanna a tumble with'er in th'first place!"

"B'fore she slamm'd a bloody plate in mah face, yeah! But I wasn't talkin' 'bout just takin' a tumble; ya really fallen fer 'er, ya dumb twit!"

"Shut up, Franko!" Panchos hand had instinctively made it's way down to the handle of his knife. "I'm jus' 'bout to slice yer face open if ya don't shut yer stinkin', lyin' trap up!"

"Oh c'mon, Pan, now you're just bein' even more pathetic!" Francisco bared his fangs in an angry snarl. "I can't fuckin' b'lieve this; mah brother's gotten himself wound up ova sum dumb, flat chick! We can't possibly be r'lated...?"

Pancho growled angrily and before Francisco got to finish, the Komod dragon had lunged himself at him. One arm he used to press his brothers throat up against the nearest building, and in the other he held his knife underneath Franciscos jaw. Francisco felt the cold steel press against his face, and a tiny droplet of blood ran down when the knife punctures his thick, black skin, but he didn't flinch.

"Next time I see 'er, I'll cut off 'er head n' shove it down yer throat. THEN you'll see how 'wound up' I've gotten ova her!" Pancho snarled threateningly and bared his sharp teeth.

His brother was quiet for a while, until a mocking smile cracked over his face. "Ya really are pathetic, ain'tcha?" He said in a mocking tone and chuckled at Panchos enraged face.

The furious Komodo dragon hissed before reluctantly letting his brother go. "I ain't takin' a fancy to 'er. An' I ain't goin' soft!" He spat, stuck the knife back into its scabbard and continued to walk down the road, not bothering if his brother was coming along or not.

Francisco chuckled at his brothers back as he rubbed his bleeding chin. "Sure! Ya ain't goin' soft, an' I'm th'queen of England!" He said quietly with a grin before he turned and walked a different path than his brother.

…

**The Nest...**

Bentley and Priscilla were walking through one of the long, gloomy corridors, after retrieving the weapons from Jones' locker. Rango had done as he said; gone back down to the Basement and retrieved the key, which he found after looking for the skinks lower body for almost half an hour. The key had been covered in so much sticky blood that Bentley had refused to even as much as looking at it, even after Priscilla wiped it clean with a piece of fabric!

In the locker they had found a whole lot of rifles, shotguns, revolvers and even some knives. And to Priscillas great joy, she even found her revolvers there! Her knife was still nowhere to be seen though, but on the other hand she found an even better one in the cabinet, and decided to keep it.

The weight of the revolvers on her hips made her feel securer, to finally being able to defend herself again if necessary was a huge relief. And this time she'd make sure the revolvers stayed with her!

As they were walking through the corridor, she couldn't help but to glance at Bentley from the corner of her eye. They were to carry all the weapons they could find back to the great hall, and while he was carrying the rifles, shotguns and the other heavier weapons, he refused to let her carry anything other than a satchel with the other five revolvers they found. When she protested, he just nodded at her wounded shoulder. It still hurt whenever she moved around too much, even after Doc looked it over and changed the bandages, which by then had been pretty filthy. Sure, she would probably have a hard time carrying more than what she was carrying now, but it still didn't feel fair.

"Prissy?" Bentley caught her staring blankly at him while she was stuck in her thoughts. She flinched and blinked at him in disorientation. "Somethin' wrong?" He returned her look with a puzzled tilt of his head.

"W-what? Oh, no, no!" She hurried to say and shook her head. "I was just thinkin'"

"'Bout...?"

"Oh, I dunno. Stuff I guess" She shrugged, but winced when a faint jolt of pain stabbed in her shoulder. She stopped and put the satchel with the revolvers down for a second.

"Prissy?" Bentley stopped as well, sounding a bit flustered, but she just shook her head at him again. "Are ya alright?"

"Yeah, it's nothin'! It's just the darn shoulder..." She muttered through gritted teeth. Ever since Francisco shot her, keeping her shoulder from hurting had been a real drag! And Bentley noticed how much it seemed to hurt her whenever she strained her shoulder, and he couldn't even put his arm around her without having to worry about not touching her wound!

They continued walking again, and Bentley kept throwing worried looks at her. They were just going to leave the weapons and hand them out to anyone who might need one, and then they would ride off to Dirt to stop Jet. And the first stage of the plan was ridiculously dangerous, Bentley admitted. Looking at Priss and how much her shoulder troubled her, he realized that it might turn out to be too dangerous for her after all. She should be one of the wounded, who were going to stay behind in the Nest, but there was no way she would agree to that! It was her town as well, and she had to help!

He held back a restrained sigh. He knew it was like trying to ask a mountain to move, but it was still worth a shot: "So, Prissy... 'Bout that shoulder..." He asked slowly without looking away from the path ahead of him.

"Yeah, what 'bout it?" She tilted her head at his side while she walked.

"Uh, well. I-I think ya should stay b'hind, again! I mean, if that shoulder starts to hurt right after we lit the..."

"It won't!" Priscilla interrupted him with a snort. "Look, Dirt is, or at least it was, my home. I NEED to help them to take it back from Jet. It's a personal thing, Bentley, an' really somethin' I has to do! If I turn my back on Dirt one more time..." She paused and looked down at the ground.

"But ya won't be turnin' yer back on them! Not if you're hurt, I think they'll understand!"

Priscilla laughed dryly. "Oh ya don't know the Dirtonians!"

With that, they both continued down the corridor in silence. Bentley was still worried that the shoulder would be a big problem, especially to her. She HAD to stay here, but she wouldn't let the others ride away without her voluntarily. His eyes fell on a door on her side which was halfway opened, with the key still on the outside. It didn't seem to be anyone in the room, which gave him an idea. An idea neither him or Priscilla would like. Correction: she'd hate it! And she'd probably hate him for it too!

He slowed down until he stopped completely and slowly put the weapons down on the ground. Priscilla saw in the corner of her eye what he was doing and came to a halt as well. She tilted her head to the side in puzzlement, silently asking what he was doing and earned a sheepish chuckle from him.

"Just gonna stand here an' rest for a while, these things gets pretty heavy after a while!" He said and began stretching one of his shoulders while grinning widely.

She nodded with a motion to the satchel with revolvers she were carrying. "Alright, but these aren't so heavy so I'll just go on ahead to the hall, okay?" She said and picked up her walking again, but she didn't get very far.

"No, wait!" Bentley said and dashed up to her and put a hand on her unharmed shoulder, making her stop and turn back around again. She looked at him with a questioning arched eyebrow. "I... Uh, I... I just..." He began to stutter, but eventually gave up and just threw his arms around her. He hugged her close and let his cheek rest on her head as he instantly wished he had a better idea than this.

She sighed and rolled her eyes at the spontaneous, yet somehow unsurprising, hug. "What now?" She mumbled and let the satchel fall to the floor.

He hesitated for a while and hugged her even tighter as they both took a step to the side.. "Prissy... I'm sorry 'bout this..."

She frowned and was about to ask him what he was talking about, but then he suddenly pushed her back, away from him. She yelped and staggered a few steps before falling backwards. To not land on her damaged side, she managed to turn on the other side and catch herself with her other hand.

"What the...?!" She hissed and turned her head, just in time to see Bentley close the door shut and turn the key in the lock. She instantly felt the anger simmer within her. _Oh no, he didn't! _"What the HELL, Bentley?!"

"I-I'm so sorry 'bout this, Prissy, I really am!" She heard his voice from the outside, muffled by the thick door. "But I can't let ya come with us, not when you're hurt! An' I know you'd never agree on stayin' b'hind, so this is the only way!"

Priss growled, scrambled to her feet and lunged at the door. "Bentley, lemme OUT! Now!" She said in a warning tone and banged her fist on the door.

"Sorry, I can't!"

"I ain't kiddin' 'round! Just open the bloody door!"

Bentley winced and his ears went back as a loud thud came from the door, it sounded as if she had thrown herself at it. "I've told ya: I can't! I-I don't think I could stand seein' ya gettin' hurt again, Prissy!"

"The only one who's gettin' hurt here are YOU! Unless ya let me outta here, NOW!" Was her angry reply.

He didn't reply, he just turned back to the weapons and picked them all up, including the satchel with guns. Then he walked up to the door, withdrew the key and put it in one of his pockets, to make sure she couldn't get out. He winced when she began throwing insults at him and judging from the thuds coming from the door, she was probably kicking it. He averted his eyes and placed his palm on the door. He felt awful for having to lock her in a room, and he knew she was going to hate him for it. But rather that than to see her get shot again.

"I love ya, Prissy..."

"Shut up an' lemme out instead, mongrel!" She retaliated with another kick at the door, making him withdraw his hand and wince, before continuing down the corridor with a low-hanging head. "Don'tcha dare to walk away from me! HEY! I'm talkin' to ya, Bentley! LEMME OUT!" She heard his footsteps slowly fade away and gave up an angry groan as she threw one last kick at the door. "For cryin' out loud, Bentley!" She cried out, even if she knew he couldn't hear her.

With an angry snort, she sat down on a chair, that was almost completely concealed in the dark room and clasped at her shoulder. It had began to throb in pain, since she had lashed out at the door and even tried to ram it a couple of times. "God damn it, Bentley..." She whispered and let her forehead rest in her palm as she leaned forward, as she tried to calm herself down.

Sure, he probably didn't mean anything bad with this, his intentions was to protect her after all. _But c'mon! It wouldn't hurt to at least put some faith in me for ONCE! _She slowly began to grind her teeth. _He knows I'm better at defendin' myself than he is, so WHY?! He sure ain't gonna get away with this! I'll show him!_

…

Bentley soon arrived at the great hall, and instantly walked over to the group consisting of Hicks, the two Rangos and Rattlesnake-Jake. The bountyhunter gave the sheriff mean glares while the four men seemed to be discussing something, and it made the sheriff stir uncomfortably where he was standing. When Bentley returned with the guns without Priscilla, the first thing sheriff Rango did was to question him about it.

"She, uh..." He trailed off and his eyes nervously darted to the side. "Umm, she decided to stay b'hind!"

"Priscilla? Stay behind?" The sheriff frowned. Priscilla had never been one to stay out from a fight before.

"Yeah, we talked for a bit, an' I told her the shoulder might put her in danger, an' she, uh, agreed to stay b'hind!" He knew he sounded a bit nervous, and the questioning look he got from the bountyhunter made him instantly avert his eyes to the ground. Rango the bountyhunter could instantly tell when one of his men were lying, and this was no exception.

Sheriff Rango tilted his head skeptically, but didn't reply. It didn't sound like Priscilla at all! "But, WHERE is she now?"

"In our, errm, her room. She said she felt a bit tired, so she'll probably spend the rest of the day there" He shrugged, hoping that it would make him seem more convincing. A silence arose for a couple of beats while sheriff Rango was thinking.

"Y'know, I should check on her at least..." He said eventually and did a move to walk past Bentley, but the hyena suddenly moved to the side and blocked the way.

"B-but she's sleepin', man!" He hurried to shake his head. "Ya can't just barge in an' wake up her like that, y'know! I thought ya were the one here with manners?!" Rango blinked confusedly and opened his mouth to protest, but were instantly interrupted by the other Rango.

"Never mind, we gotta git goin' now. If we drag this out we might have an army waitin' for us, ready for anythin', since Bill knows we're alive an' probably gone off to tell Jet 'bout it!" The bountyhunter in black said and cocked his head at the sheriff. "Ya got the matches?"

"Oh, yeah... The matches! Umm, just a sec..." The sheriff mumbled and began scrambling around in his vest for the box of matches. "Here!" He said and waved with the little dark green cartridge when he found it.

"Ya actually found 'em? Not bad!" The other Rango said with a shrug.

"Uh, Rango? Have I missed something here?" A voice piped up from behind the group, and Bentleys ears perked when he heard his friends familiar voice.

"Scrangey?" He cheered and snapped around, his sudden movement made Scrange flinch and back off, which looked a bit clumsy since he was supporting himself with a crutch. "Hey, buddy!"

Scrange had been sleeping until now, still beat up and completely pummeled since Bentley attacked him yesterday, and when he noticed the said hyena among the little group of men, he instantly skipped back with a suspicious look on his face and his hand gripped the handle of the crutch tightly. "H-hey there, Bentley..."

Bentley looked at his friend with his head tilted in puzzlement, confused over his wariness, but then he remembered. "Oh... I-I know Scrange... I'm really sorry 'bout that... ALL that!"

The little fat rat hurried to hold his paws up. "I-it's quite alright! Just, DON'T get any closer than that, okay?" Bentley nodded mutely.

"Good to see ya back up Scrange, but you're stayin' here. Us an' a bunch of others are gonna go take Filth back from Jet, wish us luck!" Rango the bountyhunter interjected between the two.

Scrange frowned in disbelief at his boss. "Why?"

"It'll save us from the noose?"

"Okay, that seems fair enough" The rat shrugged, but that quick movement with his shoulders caused him to stretch his wounds and he cringed in pain.

Bentley frowned worriedly. "Are ya alright, Scrangey?"

"Yeah, relatively speaking."

"Enough of this already! Didn't ya say ya were gonna leave as soon as the hyena return'd with the weapons?" Jake hissed and lowered his head down to the same level as the basilisk.

"Yeah, absolutely. But y'know how chatty people always seem to show up for a talk right when you're busy?" The lizard replied with a smirk and a shrug, Jake tilted his head at him and gave him a flat look. Rango sighed and held up his hands in defense. "Alright, alright, we'll git to it!" He grabbed the nearest rifle and climbed up on a nearby table and whistled at the men, who were preparing themselves for the attack. "Ey! Anyone 'ere who's in DIRE need of a weapon or bullets or somethin'? We've got a shitload 'ere an'...! No. Fuck off, Fledge! Ya got more weapons than anyone here, ya psychopath! No weapanos, comprende?!"

"Where do all these people come from?" Scrange slowly shook his head.

"Their parents?" Bentley replied immediately and grinned widely at the rat, trying to at least draw out a smile from his friend. But instead of getting the response he wished for, Scrange just frowned skeptically at him and backed another step, making his own smile fade more and more. "Um... Dirt... They've been kicked out from their town, an' the youngest, women an' the wounded are gonna stay 'ere while we others go an' fight... Ya an' Prissy are gonna stay 'ere too, y'know!"

"Good, because I'm going back to bed. Can hardly walk as it is..." The rat mumbled with a frown at the bandages and wounds covering his body. Bentley averted his eyes in guilt.

"Then what're ya doin' up in the first place?" Hicks raised an eyebrow and flicked his ears back.

The rat snorted at the tall coyote. "Because I've heard people yapping about all morning. And while you guys might be good at making a ruckus, it has never even been close to this!" He shrugged and turned around. "I'm hitting the hay now, let me know when you're back! Or wait, don't! I'll probably notice anyway!" And with that, the short, stout rat limped off, supporting himself on the little crutch.

"Y-y'know I AM sorry, right?" Bentley shouted after him, and his ears instantly drooped when he didn't get a reply.

"He knows ya didn't mean to..." Hicks said and crossed his arms. "But he's still traumatized, ya just gotta give him some time!"

Bentley whimpered and nodded slowly. Sure, he had Priscilla now so he wasn't completely alone, but Scrange had been his best friend for two years. Two years was a very short time, indeed. But one does not simply just lose a best friend... again!

"Hey! Bentley! Ya awake?!" Rango the bountyhunter barked suddenly, next to him stood Birdie, saddled and all geared up. He thought that since Priscilla was going to stay here, he might as well borrow her roadrunner. Birdie didn't seem so bad in fact, if only he could stop getting so jumpy over every little thing. Besides, out of those few who were available, since Jet took everyone else to pull the wagons, Birdie was the only one who whose rider wouldn't be needing him, as she was going to stay behind anyway.

"Huh? Oh, yup! I'm awake!"

"Good, b'cause we're leavin' NOW!" He paused and threw a glance behind him, over at the stable. Arrow was standing there with narrowed eyes and glared menacingly at her master with the younger bird. "I'll go on an' ride ahead an' y'all will be followin' on foot, just like we said, right?"

Bentley nodded. "Yup, we'll see ya there!" Rango gave a nod in return and literally jumped up on the roadrunners back. "Good luck, Rang! I've got a feelin' ya need it!"

Rango snorted and rolled his greenish yellow eyes. "Luck? I don't need luck!" _I'll need a god damn guardian angel!_

…

**Back in Dirt...**

Bad Bill was quietly clenching his jaw as he stomped out from the tent, with Stump close on his tail. The rest of his gang was waiting further away with their roadrunners, but that wasn't where Bill was heading.

Stump slowed down before coming to a full stop. "Uh, boss...?"

"Go tell the others we're ridin' out!" Bill stopped by one of the wagons that hadn't been unloaded yet, and still was full with wooden crates in all sizes. He climbed up on the wagon and searched for a crowbar, which Jet had been ordered to be present on every wagon just in case.

"But the 'coon said...!"

"I don't give a bloody damn what that guy said! I'm sick of takin' orders from these blokes! From now on we're on our own, for good!" The gila monster spat, found the crowbar and began prying one of the boxes open.

The jackrabbit was silent for a while, before nodding approvingly. "So, where are we going, boss?"

"Back to the Snakes Rattle, we were so close to Clints loot I could smell it! But first..." He paused and picked up a short, red rod from the box; dynamite. "First I think we're gonna go visit those ol' 'friends' of ours in that Nest, an' pay 'em back for previous times!" He threw the dynamite to the short jackrabbit, who caught it and looked down at it with a smug smile. "What're ya still waitin' 'round for?! Jus' go an' git 'em already!"

The short jackrabbit flinched at the sudden, harsh tone, nodded quickly and turned around, running as fast as his short legs could carry him to where the others were standing. Bill took a last look around, making sure nobody was watching him before he began to pocket some of the dynamite in the box.

**So yeah, that's it for this time ^^... Meh, haven't got much to say, see y'all next time :P!**


	57. Burn, baby, burn!

**Ain't got much to say, other than things are finally starting to happen ;)... Okay, things have always happened, or else this would've been a much shorter story... **

**Anyway, enjoy~!**

***** Chapter Fifty-seven : Burn, Baby, Burn! *****

The sun was still lingering on the sky, throwing it's bright light over the town of Dirt, or what was left of it. Sure most the buildings were still standing, but a major part of the town was flooded and there was an eerie sense of abandonment over the area. Despite the men buzzing around like flies among the buildings, splashing about as they crossed the flooded areas, it almost felt like a newly abandoned ghost town. And the huge gap stretching from one side of the main street to the other didn't do much to improve the scenery either.

The parts that weren't flooded however, were starting to get crammed with tents of all shapes and sizes, and a whole bunch of wagons were parked just a few steps away from Jets tent. Some of the wagons were empty, a few were still to be unloaded and the rest were stocked with filled water containers. Jet had already gotten a huge order from the town of Beryl, and he was dead set on making his first customer satisfied!

The raccoon leaned against one of the rickety pillars holding a small, quadratic balcony up on one of the houses as he watched the water delivery. He couldn't believe how dense the natives of Dirt had been. They had thousands, no, MILLIONS worth of water in one of the driest places on earth, and they kept it for themselves. Their little town was rugged, worn and some of the buildings looked like they should have collapsed last year, but instead of making a profit of their water reserve and completely rebuild the town from a dump to a grand metropolis, they just used the lake as a, well, lake! But then again, he had heard that these people were very old fashioned, primitive even! Their mayor had tried to bring them out of the caveman stage and civilize their little Western burrow, and how had they thanked him? They let Rattlesnake-Jake drag him off and possibly murder him, like the Grim Reaper he is.

As soon as he heard that Rango had some business in a small town called Dirt, Jet had instantly grown an interest for the town and had soon found out everything there was to know about it. A small frontier town, founded by a man named Tortoise John, who naturally became their mayor. Back then, this had been a prospering place, with the valleys and canyons filled with just enough water for everyone, but then the humans decided to march in and build one of their towns in the valley and completely grabbed the water for themselves. Sure, the desert dwellers soon figured out how to get their share of the water too! But the mayor had seen the progress the humans made during the years and became inspired by their great town, and decided to bring this positive change to his little Dirt. And would've succeeded too, if it weren't for the little sheriff whom so boldly took Rangos name and boasted about HIS escapades.

Jet scraped with one of his feet onto the ground and frowned. The mayor had been right though: the old West IS dying. Jet himself had been to towns that followed the humans examples and had everything from indoor plumbing and taps to casinos and night clubs. The humans still had the lawman and the outlaws left, they only went under different names. Who knows for how much longer men like Rango and the Gajerras are gonna stay? Ten more years? Five more years? Until tomorrow?

A sudden, loud crack was heard from the pillar he leaned on woke him up from his thoughts. He barely managed to jump out of the way before the pillar gave away and the entire balcony crumbled down. He coughed at the dust being stirred up and staggered back from the debris, before brushing off his coat and stroll away, whistling innocently and pretending that nothing happened.

Before he decided to retreat into his tent to come up with a way to outwit the coming attackers, he threw one hasty glance at the lake and snickered contentedly. In fact, the main street and the Mud lake was now one big lake that had joined together. The surface was calm, only a few ripples caused by the gentle wind stirred on the surface.

But if Jet would've looked longer at the lake, he would soon have noticed the green and yellowish fin that broke through the calm surface and made it's way towards the town. The fin was soon joined by a long, ridged dorsal fin and a whipping tail before the owners head peeked up through the surface. Rangos bright yellow eyes scouted the area before the green basilisk lizard silently began to make his way to the protection of the nearest building. Even when he was wading in knee-high water, he barely made any sound. His scaly green skin was shimmering in the sunlight, wet by the water, and clamped between his teeth he held a long, sharp knife. Not his own though, he'd never wear that thing in his mouth for a very lethal reason.

He managed to hide in the building before anyone could spot him and for that he thanked his lucky star. That was step one. Step two was to find the tank of gasoline and spread it's contents all over the town, and step three was to get the hell out before the others arrived and did step four.

It was easier than he first thought to find the tank, as they had carried it into the stables, where the floor was covered in ankle-deep water. Now there was only one question left: how do one drench an entire town in this? Rango glanced down at the water, and a crazy idea formed in his mind. Maybe it wouldn't even work, but it was worth a shot.

He took the knife and stabbed it into the bottom of the red plastic tank. He twirled the blade around to make the hole bigger before he yanked it out. The gas was slowly dripping out into the water, but not fast enough so he repeated the procedure until the entire bottom of the tank was perforated with holes, and the clear, funny smelling liquid was quickly escaping from there. Rango nodded, satisfied with his mission as he saw the multicolored streaks of gas slowly float through the door and out around on the main street. Rango was about to turn around and sneak out the backdoor when he heard a voice outside the stable and quickly hid behind the tank.

"Hey? Anyone in there?" Said, without a doubt, Larry and Rango felt his heart skip a beat as the said jackrabbit peeked in through the door. He didn't see the lizard, but he saw the holes in the plastic tank and his ears instantly jolted skyward. "What the devil?!" He exclaimed and rushed in to see if there was some way to salvage the gasoline, but as soon as he reached the tank, Rango jolted out from his hideout.

Shocked over the sudden and unexpected attack, Larry staggered back and fell to the ground on his stomach when Rangos fist collided with his face, splashing water loudly all around him. Rango didn't give him any time to get up before he pushed the sand colored jackrabbits face down underneath the water. Larry panicked as he felt the oxygen in his lungs drain, and the strong lizard only pushing his face down further into the shallow water. In a desperate try to attract attention, he began to flail his arms and legs around to splash as much as possible. Rango rewarded him by placing both of his hands on the back of his head and put his entire weight to keep him underneath the water, as if he'd drown quicker that way.

When Larry finally stopped splashing and stirring about, and finally got limp, the lizard carefully let go of the dead body and backed off. He was breathing heavily and sweat ran down his forehead and arms. He cursed when he realized that he was now covered in gasoline as well, now he REALLY had to get out of here before the others returned!

"Laurence? Larry? What the hell are ya doin' in there, mate?" Now it was Jeffs turn to be drawn to the stables, and it made Rango let out a restrained sigh and grind his teeth. But this time, Rango didn't have time to hide until the dark grayish brown hedgehog burst through the stable doors. He froze in shock as he first saw his friend lying face down in the water, limp and lifeless, and the bountyhunter stood towering over him with an annoyed frown on his face.

Jeff turned on the spot and bolted out, waving his arms and screaming on top of his lungs. Rango cursed a third time, took the knife he had used to stab holes in the tank and threw it. He had always sucked at throwing knifes, no matter how much Fledge tried to teach him the technique, so therefore he wasn't surprised when the knife merely collided with Jeffs head. But what DID surprise him was that the knife managed to break through the hedgehogs quills and the handle hit the back of his head with a _thud_, knocking him out cold.

But even if he managed to silence the hedehog for the moment, it was already too late as several others rushed to the main street. He hurried out through the back of the stables and got into the corrals, but all for naught; a group of men had already gathered there and were pointing their guns at the basilisk. He backed back into the stables, but even there he were met with more men and their weapons.

"Well, shit..." Rango muttered as he was forced to throw the knife aside and reach for the skies.

…

Meanwhile Bentley, sheriff Rango, sheriff Woodrow, Jonas, Hicks, Caleb and Mongo had managed to sneak into the town without attracting any attention, which was miraculous as Bentley suddenly burst out into a violent sneeze attack, sneezing at least five times within ten seconds!

"Sorry, but smells kinda funny here" He said with a sheepish smile as he rubbed his nose with the back of his hand. The others didn't look the least bit amused.

"Smooth, Bentley. Real' smooth!" Caleb said dryly and narrowed his eyes.

"Hey, what? It ain't my fault it smells! I didn't do it!"

"Keep it down y'two!" Hicks hissed and quickly covered behind the nearest house wall. The others hurried to follow the coyotes example just as a group of men dashed past, without as much as a look at their direction.

"What got 'em in such a hurry?" Caleb asked pondering and Mongo shrugged his broad shoulders in reply.

"I dunno... Bentley?" Hicks said and turned around, but Bentley was already busy climbing up to the roof by using the window-frames.

He managed to reach the roof and crept along the tiles as carefully as he could, trying his best to not get the clay tiles to slide down and crash on the ground. While lying low, he peered around the town and noticed that everyone seemed to gather over by the main street. He crawled back to the other end and passed on the information to the others.

"Main street? Oh great, I bet it's Rango..." Caleb muttered and folded his arms. "Nice goin' there, lizard!"

"Hey, we don't know for sure!" Hicks replied before turning his head back to Bentley, still nestled on top of the roof. "We're headin' over to main street to check it out, come down 'ere!"

Bentley nodded and was just about to climb down again when he spotted something in the corner of his eye. "Shit! Komorons incomin'!" He hissed down at the others and hid himself behind the opposite ridge of the roof.

"K-komorons?" Sheriff Rango frowned in puzzlement.

"The Gajerras!" Hicks explained and once again hid behind the wall, waving to the others to hide as well. They had all barely managed to find hiding spots when the two giant, tar black lizards walked past.

Pancho stopped and sniffed the air suspiciously. His brother slowed down and threw an annoyed look at him. "What now?"

"Ya smell sumthin'?"

"Yeah, yer breath! C'mon, I wanna see this!" Francisco snorted and picked up the walking. Pancho delayed for a couple of beats, before he followed Francisco and eventually caught up with him.

The sheriffs, Hicks and the others continued to sneak silently among the houses towards the main street, while Bentley decided to advance forward via the rooftops. Jumping and climbing among the roofs also meant that he had a much better view of the area than the others and he spotted the main street just as Rango was forced to walk out into the street with the muzzles of several rifles aimed at his back. Bentley got to a halt and frowned in disgust as he also noticed that the smell from before had gotten stronger and was by now stinging in his nose. In the sunlight, he also saw colorful streaks in the water covering the main street.

He tilted his head. "Ooh, pretty!" He said with a grin and studied the colorful ripples while trying to block out the smell. But then his grin vanished as he realized something. This wasn't a natural phenomena, those rainbow streaks?

The men down below seemed to notice the smell as well, but they tried to ignore it as they just thought it had something to do with the huge crevice running along the big street. They didn't recognize the smell, but Jet did. It was familiar to him, but he couldn't put his finger on what it could be.

Bentley wasn't so sure of what it was either, but he had his suspicions. He waited for the others to catch up before he quickly climbed down to the ground and held up his hands in a stopping gesture while he quickly shook his head.

"Bentley?" Hicks arched both of his eyebrows in confusion. "What...?"

"Hicks, we gotta problem. Biggo problemo!" The hyena said and slowly lowered his hands. "First of all, we all gotta stay outta the water from now on!"

"Vhat is it this tajm?" Jonas frowned worriedly.

"Rango has been discovered, an' I think he has emptied the liquidoline in the water!"

"It's still called gasoline, ya moron!" Caleb snorted in annoyance and rolled his eyes.

Bentley returned the snort and folded his ears back. "No, it's not a gas; it's a liquid, dumbass!"

"Gasoline!"

"Liquidoline!"

"Gas!"

"Liquid!"

"Gas!"

"Liquid!"

"Gas!"

"Liquid!"

"Liquid!"

"Gas!... Wait? Oh crap..."

"Haha!"

"Shut up y'two!" Woodrow snarled, tired of the twos meaningless verbal battles. "What are ya sayin', hyena?"

"I'm sayin' that it should be called liquidoline instead of...!"

"Focus, Bentley!" Hicks interrupted Bentley with an angry bark, which made Bentley jump back and his ears drooped in surprise.

"Alright, alright! They got Rango, I just saw them force him out of the stables. An' I've never smelled LIQUIDoline before, but there's somethin' reekin' 'bout here, an' I doubt it's old cave-scent that's resurfaced!" The hyena said and did a motion towards the main street. "An' if ya look at the water in sunlight, it got all these pretty rainbowy spots all over it, I think he might've found a way to spread the LIQUIDoline through the water or somethin'?"

Hicks gritted his teeth. "Where's Rango now? Still out in the street?"

"Yeah, right in the water!" Bentley nodded.

"Great..."

Caleb was quiet for a second, before he finally spoke: "I've got an idea! Gussy and Jonas go and get me a stick or somethin' and some fabric if ya can find, while Wannabee, Chicks, Woody..." He said and pointed at sheriff Rango, Hicks and Woodrow. "Ya three act like snipers and take out each randomly selected target, preferably some of those who's closest to Rang. B, during the ruckus ya sign for Rang to run through that narrow alley there!" His finger moved to the narrow space between two buildings which led straight to the main street. "As soon as he's through, me an' Mongo will lit the place up like the fourth of July. Y'all make sure ya stay outta the water an' we won't have any troubles, 'kay?"

"Really? We'll take orders from the kid now?" Gus frowned and was accompanied by a slow shake of the head from Woodrow.

"Well, let's hear YOUR great plan then, Napoleon!" Caleb said with a sarcastic grin and gritted his teeth. When Gus didn't answer, Hicks nodded shortly at Caleb.

"It's worth a shot. Let's get someplace high, sheriffs!" The coyote said and inspected his rifle.

"Aj'll get teh stick..." Jonas muttered and slithered away among the houses.

"I'll git th'fabric then..." Gus mumbled and trotted off in the opposite direction of the snake.

Before sheriff Rango followed Hicks and Woodrow to another roof, he first gave the cartridge with matches to Caleb. Bentley had already climbed up behind one of the houses on the side of the path where Rango soon would be running for dear life. Caleb glanced up at Mongo.

"Let's see how well ya toss other things than just rocks, big guy!"

…

Rango threw a warning glance over his shoulder when one of the men poked him in the shoulder with his rifle, either to make him go faster or to show off in front of Jet and the Gajerras. Probably both.

"Do that again an' I'll do the same to ya as I did to Larry, git it?" He growled at the desert iguana responsible, who gripped the rifle tighter in his hands and raised the weapon to once again shove it in the basilisks back. But Rango was fast and swatted the gun away with his hand, entirely knocking it out of the iguanas hands. "What the HELL did I just say?!" He raised his voice and ignored the deafening clicks of multiple hammers getting drawn back all around him.

Jet was standing in front of the general store on the worn, wooden sidewalk just above the waters edge, not wanting to risk his coat getting wet. The Gajerras were watching Rango with amused grins and their arms folded.

"I've never heard about you attacking alone in broad daylight before, Rango?" Jet said suspiciously and tilted his head. "Where's the others?"

"What others?" Rango shrugged innocently. Francisco drew his gun in a flash and fired a warning shot that whistled just past his fin, casing him to jump to the side in surprise. "Oh, ya mean those others!" He shrugged again. "Sorry, I dunno!"'

Francisco clicked back the hammer on his gun to put the second bullet between the basilisks eyes, but was stopped by Jet just as he began to squeeze the trigger ever so slightly. "Wait, Gajerra! Don't kill him off just yet!" The raccoon narrowed his eyes in suspicion as he kept his gaze locked on Rango, not bothering to return the looks he got from the two Komodo dragons. "I've got a really bad feeling about all this... We're gonna keep him here, and the rest of you go out and search for the...!"

He didn't even get to finish the sentence as the first shot echoed throughout the town and the desert iguana, who previously had shoved his rifle into Rangos back, fell to the ground, lifeless. The other men quickly backed away from the lizard and began scouting for any attackers, their weapons ready. Jet staggered back before giving Rango a venomous glare. The basilisk returned the glare with a sheepish, innocent smile and a third shrug. For once, he didn't know what was going on either, but he had his suspicions.

Sudden he heard someone whistle at him and instantly snapped his head up at the roof of the general store. Bentley was waving at him and pointed at the side of the building, to a thin alleyway between the the general store and another equally large building. Rango quickly got the point as two more shots boomed, sending two more targets to their deaths. The two shots were shortly followed by a third who hit the wall behind Jet. The armed men instantly began to fret for their lives and began shooting randomly around the rooftops, hoping to hit at least someone! Rango looked around, noticed that everyone were busy with their invisible attackers and made a run for the alley, praying to every deity he knew of that Bentley wouldn't lead him to a dead-end.

Jet saw the lizard bolt across the street, swiftly jump over the crack even if he was running in almost knee-high water by then and head straight for the side of the building. The raccoon instantly began to fumble for his bag, but only met with empty air as he realized he had left it behind in his tent. He cursed and made a quick dash to the side of the pavement. "Gajerra!" He exclaimed and pointed at the quick lizard making a beeline for the alley. He was really close now. "What are you waiting for?! GET HIM!"

Neither Pancho or Francisco could stand getting ordered around, but they didn't want Rango to get away either, so with low growls and clenched jaws they began to pursue the smaller and quicker green lizard. As they dashed past Jet, their heavy steps made water splash up on the raccoons coat and he took a yelping step back.

With a low curse about Komodo dragons he began to brush the water off when he suddenly noticed that the funny smell had intensified, clearly originating from the stains on his coat. He frowned and sniffed it and finally realized what the familiar smell was; gasoline. His eyes widened as he looked over the water and noticed the colorful streaks floating by. "Oh no..." He slowly shook his head.

"Hey! Uglies! Up here!" Bentley shouted and threw one of the roofing tiles at the Komodo dragons, which hit Francisco in the head with a satisfying _crash_. The giant lizard staggered to the side, but managed to keep himself from falling over as he and his brother both stopped and looked up at the roof, allowing Rango to swiftly dash through the alley and out of the water to safety. "Yeah, that's right! Ya two REAL' ugly ones! I've got a matter to settle with ya two, concernin' my gal! Remember her? Ya know, the one ya tried to murder but failed epicly b'cause she happens to be at least a thousand times more awesome than y'all combined? Well, I AM a bit pissed 'bout that! Nobody messes with my gal, except for me!"

While Bentley was rambling about, attracting the mutineers attention, Caleb had quickly wrapped some fabric around a dry stick, thus creating a torch. He lit it on fire and handed it to Mongo, who looked at it with a skeptical frown before taking it from the young aye-aye and backed off a few steps. He braced himself and threw the torch high up in the air, sending it flying over the general stores roof.

"Oh, an' one more thing!" Bentley shouted at all the men. "I've got a message for y'all from Jonas!" Just as he said it, the burning torch came soaring through the sky. The men watched the torch with mixed surprise and confusion. "You're all FIRED!"

Just as he said the last word, the torch fell into the water and made contact with the highly flammable liquid that floated on the surface. He didn't stay around to watch the fire form and blaze through the entire flooded area where the gas had reached; instead he instantly turned around and climbed back down in less than a few seconds. A loud explosion was heard when the fire made contact with the rest of the gasoline still inside the tank, causing the entire flooded stable to blow up.

The gang had gathered again on the dry parts of the town and Bentley had just made it to them when the explosion made the earth shake and he tripped forward, faceplanting in the dirt. He snapped his head up, spat out the sand and laughed gleefully at his own joke. "Hehe, you're all fired! Hehehe... Damn, I should just marry myself sometimes... Unless Prissy does it first! Hey, guys!" He waved at the rest of the gang while he was still lying on his stomach on the ground. "Ya think Prissy wanna marry me after all this?!"

"Not if she's in her right mind!" Caleb opened his mouth before the others could tell him to focus on the current time being. "Which she obviously isn't, but I still think you deserve better, B!"

Bentley snorted and was about to retaliate when he heard it; the screams of men getting lit on fire and burned to a crisp, all while still being alive and running. His grin disappeared when he even saw a figure completely cloaked in fire flee from the main street, only to collapse next to a house and set it on fire as well.

Bentley slowly got up on his knees and looked around. "This... was a pretty bad plan, wasn't it?" He said lowly and flattened his ears to his neck to block out the noise.

"Are ya kiddin' with us?! This was probably one of the best plans ya made up so far!" Rango the bountyhunter laughed, his sentence was shortly followed by the sound of several gunshots originating from the main street, including the familiar sound of Jakes gatling-rattle firing a couple of rounds at their enemies.

The town getting lit on fire had been their cue to attack, aka step five, and the bountyhunter wasn't going to let the others take over their party. Hicks handed his belt, guns and poncho back to him, and the lizard controlled that both of his revolvers were fully loaded before holstering them again. "C'mon, we ain't gonna let 'em git all the fun now are we?"

"Uh, h-haven't we already had our 'fun' here?" The chameleon sheriff gulped and stared at the blazing fires, which had now engulfed the entire street and it's buildings, and at the critters trying to flee from the inferno and their new attackers.

"Nope! This was just the first stage!" Hicks said with an uncharacteristic smug smile. "This is where the REAL fun b'gins!"

Sheriff Rango gulped again. "Oh..."

**Okay, I really have NO idea if gasoline burns on water or not, but it's fanfiction based on a movie about an anthro-chameleon with a hawaii-shirt. Logic was already gone from the start so deal with it xD**

**If you didn't get "Disco Inferno" playing in your head from reading the chapters title, you didn't read it :P. Seriously, I had that infernal song (no pun intended) on repeat in my mind ALL THE TIME while writing this, but I couldn't resist it: it was just such a perfect title for this chappie x)!  
**

**Anyway, you're probably humming the old epic disco song right now, and you're very welcome for that! I hope I'll finish the next chapter soon, see y'all then ^^!**


	58. The Revenge

**Yup, next chapter here! So, SO sorry it's late! All this frickin' homework and tests the teachers has thrown at us these past weeks has given me one heck of a writers block and I'm really unmotivated right now... I want the summer break to start, but we've got like, three weeks left ;_;!**

***** Chapter Fifty-eight : The Revenge *****

The sun was still present on the clear blue sky, even if the furthest horizon had begun to shimmer with an orange glow. Bad Bill snorted as he turned his eyes away from the entrance of the Nest. They had been watching for a long time and so far they hadn't even seen the slightest of activity. The ground outside seemed untouched and the only sound being heard was the faint, weak echo from the townspeoples never ending chattering. Bill smirked to himself. _Good, they're still in there! Maybe that raccoon was right? Maybe he only DO attack in the mornings?_

Behind him were his group of five men. For more than fifteen years it had only been him, the shrew Chorizo and the two jackrabbits Stump and Kinski in their little mercenary gunslinger gang, but after they met Brumby and Grant at a saloon brawl in Dry Creek five years ago, they decided to let the groundhog and the hare join the gang, even if Stump and Kinski first opposed the idea to accept Grant, the Scottish hare, into the group. Apparently, a long time ago something had happened between jackrabbits and hares that makes the two species unable to stand each other nowadays. No one really knew what happened anymore though, but one thing was sure: Stump, Kinski and Grant weren't going to let the old traditions die, and those three more than often got into a brawl. And those brawls always started the same way: by arguing.

Although, during these five years the three rabbits had learned to get along somewhat and keep the fighting to a minimum, especially when they were out on business. But every now and then, someone would make the pot boil over with another and the three would get into a heated battle, with Chorizo, Brumby and Bill grinding their teeth in annoyance or just simply rolling their eyes. And after the bountyhunter had his friend to lock them up in the Basement, thus instantly turning his former ally into his enemy, Stump, Kinski and Grant had become unbearable, even for the guards, so they had to be split up into different cells. At least it stopped them from beating each other to death, but not the verbal insulting.

And right now, the three rabbits were busy exchanging wary glares, while Brumby and Chorizo were awkwardly discussing the weather. They had been running to and from the canyon all day, and they were all anxious to go back to the Snakes Rattle and find the legendary loot buried within. But first, their boss had to satiate his need for revenge against the two Rangos.

His men had patiently waited for him to stop staring at the entrance, and Brumby was about to walk up to Bill and question him, when the gila monster got up and turned to them all with a confident smirk on his face.

"They all seem to be home, so let's get those firecrackers in place!" He nodded at the saddlebags on his roadrunner. It didn't take long for them to equip themselves with the dynamite and divide themselves into groups; Chorizo and Stump were to place dynamite around one side of the entrance while Grant and Brumby did the same on the other. Then Bill would come and connect them all with the long wire he managed to get his claws on, light it and boom! The Rangos and their companions would be buried underneath tons and tons of rubble like the ancient pharaohs!

"Hey! Vat do I do zen?" Kinski, the hunchback, said with a faint, annoyed growl as he didn't hear his name get called on.

"You're stayin' up 'ere and keep an eye on the 'runners! Don' want any of 'em git scared and run off to the worlds end!" Bill replied and pointed with a massive claw at their birds.

Grant couldn't help but to snicker gloatingly at Kinskis disapointed frown. "Vhy?"

"Y'know bloody well why we ain't lettin' ya near fireworks again!" Was Bills quick reply.

"Pyromaniac..." Grant mumbled to himself and rolled his eyes.

"I 'eard zat!"

…

The gloomy hallway was empty, except for a few forgotten boxes and barrels left here and there, and the silence was making the hallway even more eerie. The only sound that was heard, except for the chattering of several mouths in the great hall, was a faint scraping noise from one of the doors; someone was unscrewing the screws that held the hinges of the door in place, with a knife.

When finally the last screw fell to the floor, sending a metallic clatter through the silent hallway, the door began to lean outwards before a hard kick made it fall with a heavy crash. Priscilla stepped out from the room and looked around, growling while clenching and unclench her hands. She knew Bentley and the others had left by now, but she wasn't going to wait for them to return. Oh no! She was going to march down to the town, comb the ensuing battle for Bentley and give him a piece of her mind!

_Nobody locks me up like that!_ She thought to herself yet another time as she began to make her way down to the great hall with determined strides. _Nobody!_

But she immediately came to a halt when she came out in the great hall and saw the mass of her old townspeople. In the heat of the moment she had completely forgotten about them! Remaining hidden in the shadows of the corridor, she watched them with a mix of emotions.

A gathering of women, children and wounded men and old were all cooped up together. One half of the hall had been turned into some kind of provisional hospital, where the wounded ones were getting stitched up, including Scrange. The children who weren't too scared and shocked at the moment, were curiously, yet cautiously, exploring the surrounding area, while Blake lied all rolled up in the darkest corner, trying to get some privacy. But it was all for naught as Mattie, who now were too curious about the snake to be scared of him, kept bugging him with her presence and questioons. He knew that Jolene really liked little Mattie, and would turn him into a pair of boots with a matching handbag if he ate the little kid, which is why he refrained from doing as much as growling at her. That and that she was actually pretty funny with all her questions about him.

Priscilla smiled faintly and rubbed her arm when she took another look around the great hall. The Dirtonians had no town, and the ones who still could fight was now off to some crazy suicide mission to reclaim their beloved Dirt. Yet, with all these things that had happened, despite everyone and everything they had lost during the past weeks, they still managed to smile and proceed with the moment as if it was something they did every day. People were talking, laughing and picking a fight like there was no tomorrow. It was great to watch, and Priscilla sighed while leaning her unhurt shoulder against the wall.

"Miss Priscilla?" Mrs Edwards familiar voice made her flinch however and quickly turn her head at Matties mother, who slowly came walking towards her.

"M-Mrs Edwards?" Priscilla stuttered with a weak voice as she was faced with one of the townspeople. Someone she was sure to have let down.

"Good to see ya again, Miss!" The kangaroo rat smiled heartily and Priscilla did a relieved sigh in her mind. But then Mrs Edwards tilted her head and frowned in worry as she saw all the wounds and bruises Priscilla had. "Oh dear, what's happened?"

The young aye-aye responded with a shrug, but instantly regretted it when a weak, stabbing pain appeared in her wounded shoulder. "A-a lot of things... Nothin' too serious though!" She stuttered and clenched her jaw to help ignoring the pain.

"Mind if I take a look at those? I doubt that work was made by a professional!"

"Actually, Doc has already..."

Mrs Edwards chuckled and shook her head. "Oh dear, sure Doc is great at his profession, when he's sober! Too bad he's always drunk, I wouldn't rely on him to put band-aid on a wound!" She grabbed Priscillas wrist and tugged her gently towards the other wounded ones. "B'sides, I heard that boy talkin' 'bout yer shoulder. It still hurts, doesn't it? I think ya need a thorough check-up, dearie!"

Priss bit her lip as her heart began to beat harder in her chest. She did NOT want to join the rest of the townspeople! They probably weren't as forgiving as Mrs Edwards! "N-no! I'm alright, Mrs Edwards! B-but I really need to...! Wait? Boy? What boy?"

"That tall dog thing! Y'know, the scoundrel who swapped the signs on the bathrooms?"

She sighed and rolled her eyes. _Bentley..._

"So, let's start with these small cuts" Mrs Edwards said when they had arrived at a table crammed with medical devices, bandages, alcohol and all sorts of other stuff. She made Priscilla sit down on a chair on the side as she began to look over the young aye-ayes wounds, questioning her about every little cut. Including the one on her foot! All the while as she tried to ignore the looks of mixed emotions she got from the townspeople who noticed that she was there. She had been right; not everyone was as forgiving as Mrs Edwards.

Soon, every single little bruise on her body stung with the strong alcohol and the older woman began to look at her shoulder. "Does it still hurt?" She asked and carefully began to unwrap the bandages, which were by now getting rather soiled.

"Yeah, every time I move it..." Priscilla answered and pressed the shirt she had to take off, against herself with one hand.

"What happened?"

"Well, I..." She hesitated. "I got shot..."

"By who?"

"One of the Komodo dragons"

Mrs Edwards paused and stared at her in disbelief. "T-the Gajerra brothers?!" She nodded in reply and Mrs Edwards continued to unwrap the bandages around her shoulder and chest, however this time her motions were shaky and twitchy. "I-I can't believe ya survived... Aren't they ruthless killers?"

"An' complete psychos!"

It was obvious that the older woman became startled when she heard about the young deputys run-in with the Gajerras, so she tried changing the subject. "So, are ya two like a couple now or somethin'?" She said with a light laugh while Priss tensed up.

"Huh? Wha...? Who?"

"You an' that man, what's his name, Benny?"

"B-Bentley?"

"Yeah, him! Well, to be honest, most of us are a bit... skeptical, to him. I mean, he's a crook, ain't he?" The kangaroo mouse said as she put the old bandages to the side and focused on the holes in Priscillas shoulder, where the bullet had gone straight through. "An' all crooks end up the same way; in the noose. One way or another. An' don'tcha think he's a bit... odd? He's definitely one of the weirdest men I've ever met, an' what's up with all that laughin'? An' those jokes, what is he, five?"

"Mrs Edwards, please, I don't think I wanna talk 'bout it..." Priscilla said with an embarrassed, red shade on her cheeks and had to strain herself from either hiding underneath the bed or giving the woman a punch on the nose.

Mrs Edwards stopped rambling for a minute and looked down at the young girl with a concerned frown. "He ain't hurtin' ya, is he?"

"What?! No!" Priss quickly exclaimed and almost turned all the way around to face Mrs Edwards. Her little outburst caused some of the townspeople to stop what they were doing and turn to her with a curious and astonished look on their faces. She quickly lowered her head in shame turn back to sit up straight again in the chair. "No, Mrs Edwards" She said and shook her head. "He's one of the most timid and nicest persons I've ever met, despite bein' an immature goofball sometimes. I know he'd never hurt me, an' even if he wanted to he'd never dare!"

Mrs Edwards nodded slowly and dipped a piece of cotton in alcohol before applying it to the wound. "Of course, I'm sorry, Miss Priscilla. It's just that... Those men..." The woman paused and put the piece of cotton to the side so she could cover her mouth with her hand. "That bountyhunter an' his men... I just can't forgive 'em... Not after what they did to my poor boy!"

Priss turned back to the woman and felt a streak of sorrow jab at her heart. She still remembered the day when Rango had shot Phillip in front of the entire village. That young boy had been the first one to go. She had never seen Mrs Edwards like that before; screaming and crying like a madman. Mrs Edwards had gone ballistic when her son was murdered in front of her, although she seemed normal now, Priss knew that deep down inside Mrs Edwards wanted nothing more than to see the bountyhunter and his men dangle from a rope. She wouldn't mind strangling them with her own hands either.

"I'm really sorry, Mrs Edwards. I really am!" Priscilla said lowly and put a hand on the kangaroo rats shaking arm. "I wish there had been somethin' I could've done to...!" She was interrupted by a wave of Mrs Edwards hand.

"Oh d-don't fret, dearie. T-there was nothin' any of us could've done! What's happened has happened." She smiled faintly and patted Priss' hand. "I only hope my boy is someplace better now, an' that lousy scoundrel gits what he deserves!"

"HEY! Everyone SHUT UP will ya?!" Blakes voice cut through the townspeoples murmur and they all looked at the diamondback as he pressed the side of his head against the rocky wall, listening intently. Mrs Edwards quickly wrapped a new, clean bandage around Priscillas shoulder and chest before the young aye-aye put her shirt back on and sneaked up to Blake.

"Blake?" She asked carefully, but earned an angry hush from the snake.

"I'm tryin'a listen! I swear, there's someone muckin' 'bout out there!" He replied in a low, hissing tone and narrowed his eyes as he listened. Suddenly his eyes opened wide and he snapped his head away from the wall, his face seemed to have grown even paler. "EV'RYONE TO THE CORRIDORS!"

...

After lighting the long fuse, Bill bolted toward the boulder the rest of the gang had taken shelter behind, except for Kinski who had remained on the ridge with the roadrunners. The explosion that followed just a few seconds afterward was deafening.

Fire exploded just atop of the entrance, sending debris and blown apart rocks flying before the entrance caved down and sealed the Nest shut. The ground shook and a small rockslide broke out at the opposite wall due to the shockwaves. When the ground stopped shaking and the loud boom faded away, Bill carefully stood up and tried to make the ringing in his ears stop by scratching. What he saw made him laugh victoriously; the entire wall had caved in and sealed off the entrance completely. Not even a fly could get out!

"Enjoy yer stay, 'buddies'!" Bill roared with laughter and mimicked Rango the bountyhunters way of calling everyone 'buddy'. The rest of his men joined halfheartedly in his laugh. They wanted to get going towards the loot already!

It didn't take long until Kinski came down with the roadrunners, everyone was still there, and he was still bitter for have missed the explosion. "Too bad you missed the party, lad!" Grant couldn't help but to chuckle. Usually, he wasn't the type to gloat at others, but he was always willing to make exceptions for jackrabbits! "You would've like it!"

Kinski snorted. "Oh, go scare a nun, ya moron!"

"Isn't that your specialty, hunchback?"

Bill managed to steer the two away from each other before Kinski threw a punch into the hares face. "Hey! If ya two say as much as ONE more word to each other I'll bury ya together like I did to these clowns!" The lizard growled and nodded with his head at the collapsed rubble. "Is that understood?!" The two jackrabbits threw one last glare at each other before nodding slowly.

"Iz understood..." Kinski growled lowly with his hazel eyes fixated on the hare.

"Ditto!" Grant replied with an equally low growl.

Bill nodded approvingly and grinned smugly. "Well, then I say it's time to git rich! Or whaddya say, boys?"

…

Thunder Wings battle cry echoed and the shrill screech striked fear into the men. The giant bald eagle would every now and then swoop down from the sky, dark from all the black smoke, scoop up a fistful of critters in his great talons and toss them into the inferno that once was main street. Then he would screech in victory once more and go back to avoiding the bullets with agile loops, surprisingly sharp turns and other air-acrobatics, that almost seemed impossible for a bird his size to do.

Jet managed to avoid the fires when they started on the main street, but once he made it to safety he sensed the scent of burned wool and noticed to his great horror that his coat had caught on fire on the spots where the gasoline had splashed. When he finally managed to kill the fire it was already too late: three large sooty holes were shown in the (very expensive) fabric and he could literally feel his heart skip several beats.

His coat was ruined, and he knew whose fault it was: Bentleys. Bentley would pay for this. He knew it was the hyenas plan, he was always the ones with the plans! And now it was a personal matter; that mangy mutt would pay for this with his life! _But first..._ The raccoon looked up from the coat and gulped at the battle scene that went on around him. _First I gotta get out of here!_

The two Rangos had started out at their own different ends but now they found themselves hiding behind the same tipped over wagon. The sheriff recognized it immediately as Beans' wagon. The bountyhunter peeked around the corners to shoot every now and then, the problem was just that he couldn't see the men they were shooting at, as they too were hiding behind various things: wagons, signs, water troughs etc. When he realized he had just wasted his three last bullets by shooting into the dark, he cursed and reloaded both of his guns.

"Gotta do somethin' 'bout that guy with the shotgun!" He said out loud to himself and narrowed his eyes where he knew his target was; behind the remnants of a shed. That guy with the shotgun had the perfect line of fire if any of the two lizards would peak their head up over the wagon to get the other men in their view. But so far they could only move from one side to another, thus missing every shot so far.

"Y-ya mean him up there?!" The chameleon said and pointed at the shed. The other Rango didn't reply.

Sheriff Rango clenched his teeth at the bountyhunter who just ignored him and drew his gun at a random man who just happened to be poking his head up over the barrel he was hiding behind, but just when he was about to pull the trigger, the fire found it's way to the weapon storage and another mighty explosion rocked the ground and made all the, already cracked, windows nearby shatter. The explosion caught the sheriff completely off guard and he jumped to the side, JUST as he squeezed the trigger.

The two Rangos watched in surprise as the bullet ricocheted, first against a bucket, then a wooden pillar until finally a horseshoe that was nailed up on the only remaining wall of the shed, causing the bullet to fly straight into the guy with the shotguns head. Killing him instantly. The bountyhunter was quiet for a long time as he raised an impressed eyebrow at the sheriff.

"Did'ya actually aim for that?" He asked after a while with a flat voice.

"I-I think I might've, actually..." The still speechless chameleon stuttered and glanced down at his revolver.

The two lizard managed to hit half of the hiding men, and scared the rest of them away. They were about to make their way back to the main street to find Jet when a familiar black, yellow and red head popped up from the ground. Coral shook the earth out of her ears and grinned at the bountyhunter as she tossed him a bunch of dynamite she managed to save from the weapon storage before it blew up. Surprised, yet grateful, he caught the dynamites.

"Well, I could always use 'em for somethin'?" He said with a shrug when the other Rango gave him a quizzing look. "Coral, have ya seen Caleb 'round?"

Coral scrunched up her forehead as she thought, but then shook her head. She hadn't seen him since the Nest.

"Great, an' he's the one who has the matches..." The bountyhunter muttered bitterly. "I think there's still some matches in the Nest, maybe in one of the tin lids in the saloon, could ya go an' fetch 'em for me, Coral?" Coral nodded enthusiastically and dove down under the earth again, continuing with digging her way back to the Nest. Rango threw two of the dynamites to the other Rango, who caught them fumblingly and stared at the bountyhunter. "Don't blow yourself up!"

"W-wha...?" The chameleon stuttered and stared down at the dynamites, which he held at an arms-length away. "Uh, thanks! I guess..." He said and looked up, only to find that the bountyhunter had vanished completely.

…

Corals head emerged above the sand in the canyon. Digging was, just like flying, a LOT faster than going by roadrunner, so it had only taken her a few minutes to arrive at the Nest. But when she saw the collapsed entrance, she was instantly gripped with panic. The others! The children, the women and the wounded had still been in there!

She stood there with her torso above ground, staring like dumbstrucked at the cave-in before turning around and was just about to return to Dirt to give them the bad news, when she stopped before she could squirm into the ground. She couldn't go tell the others! First of all, another Bentley freak-out was the last thing they needed. Second, they were too busy to come anyway, fighting Jet and everything.

Biting down hard on her lower lip she looked at the rubble blocking the entrance. She had to help them herself. Suddenly, a familiar scent was felt. She frowned and darted her tongue out of her mouth and her green eyes narrowed in anger when she recognized the scent; _Bad Bill!_

**Just can't apologize enough for how slow I've been with this chapter -.-... Now I'll FINALLY go and get some sleep o_o! It's almost midnight over here, but I just HAD to finish this! Or else I would've gone crazy or something -.-!**


	59. Someone to believe in

**Aand the homework is finally slowing down as we're approaching the summers break, in other words: AWESOME! MORE SPARETIME!  
**

**This is pretty much just a random chapter to help Priss reconnect to the Dirtonians ^^"**

***** Chapter Fifty-nine : Someone To Believe In *****

Slowly, the dust settled and the cacophony of half a town coughing simultaneously filled the cavern. Priscilla covered her mouth with the back of her hand as she joined in the coughing when the dust from the explosion entered her respiratory system and made her eyes water.

Half of the great hall had caved in and the exit was completely blocked by tons of rubble. The stables had luckily been empty when the explosions went off, and the only roadrunner that was left behind, Arrow, was trotting out from one of the corridors with a sleepy and annoyed look on her face.

If it hadn't been for Blake warning them, they would all have been buried underneath the masses of rocks and debris. Nobody knew for sure who or what caused the explosions, but when Scrange and Priscilla caught eyecontact for a few seconds they both realized they were thinking the same thing; _Jet!_

It HAD to be Jet! Who else could have done something like this to a cavern full of women, children and wounded?

"Mattie?!" Mrs Edwards sudden scream made Priscilla turn around in fear. "Oh god, MATTIE?! MATHILDA, WHERE ARE YOU?!" The kangaroo rat was hysterically running to and from, frantically searching for her daughter while her two remaining sons and wounded husband nervously looked around for their sister and daughter.

Priss was about to run up to the worried-beyond-reasoning mother when she noticed an odd, gray pile by the wall. When the pile suddenly got two fire-colored eyes she noticed it was Blake. The diamondback coughed up some dust and raised his head, blinking with his orange eyes. He had curled himself up to protect himself from the fallen rubble and was now gray with dust, resembling not too far from a ghost. He threw an annoyed glare at Mrs Edwards and snarled. "Gee! Calm down, woman!" He shouted at the kangaroo rat, who jumped and looked at the big snake with dark, scared and tearful eyes. "I got yer kid right here, stop bein' such a loudmouth!" With a mumble, he slowly uncoiled and revealed that in the middle of his coils, there had been a young kangaroo rat girl, completely unharmed, but scared!

"M-mom?" She removed her hands that covered her head and blinked at the surrounding world. "MOM!" She screamed when she saw her mother and ran up to her. Relieved that her daughter was safe and sound, Mrs Edwards almost began crying again as she scooped up her frightened daughter in her arms and hugged her close.

Blake flinched when the mother looked up at him, this time her tearful eyes was beaming with gratitude. "T-thank you, Rattlesnake! Thank you!"

Lucky for Blake, the gray dust covering his body also concealed the red blush that appeared on his cheeks. "H-hey, I had to! Okay?!" He replied, sounding like he was defending himself. "If Jo found out that I let that brat get squished, she would've killed me for sure!" When he noticed that the entire gathering of townspeople was looking at him, his entire face turned red. "An' if anyone says anythin' to another, I'll EAT that person whole! Is that clear, ya damn hillbillies?!"

"Blake?" Priscilla made her way up to the flustered diamondback. "What did ya hear?"

"I dunno" He jerked his head to the side in a shrug. "Someone was talkin' to another an' then I heard a fuse bein' lit..."

"Did'cha hear who it was?"

"Lady, I didn't even hear what they were talkin' 'bout!" Blake narrowed his ember eyes, clearly standing out against the gray dust all over his body, at her and let his tongue dart out of his mouth in an annoyed manner. "How the hell should I know who it was who was doin' the talkin'?!"

"Well, sorry then!" She replied with a dry snort. "I was just askin'!"

"W-what happened?" One of the women suddenly asked, a panicky tone was heard in her voice.

"Was that our only way out?"

"Does that mean we're trapped in 'ere?!"

"I DON'T WANNA DIE IN HERE!"

Suddenly they were all talking at the same time, panic broke out and the cacophony of hysteria was deafening. Priscilla couldn't do much more than to just watch as the panic spread like a wildfire to the people, and even Scrange looked at her with an uncertain and frightened look. She looked away and turned her back to the mass as she tried to block the loud murmur out and think. There HAD to be another way out! Jonas wasn't stupid, he had surely planned for something like this and got an emergency exit hidden somewhere. The question was just; where?

She suddenly turned her head to the roof, or more exactly: to Thunder Wings hatch. But she immediately dismissed that idea since the only one who could climb up there was Bentley, and he wasn't exactly nearby and available right now. With a defeated sigh she turned back to face the group of townspeople. Total chaos had erupted as the scared townspeople scurried around the place, chattering and screaming. Some held themselves close to any family or friends and just cried, in fear that they would probably die down here. A desperate few were trying to dig their way out, but were only met with defeat as more rubble and rocks fell down where they had been digging.

They needed a leader, someone who could steer things up and calm everyone down. They needed Rango, sheriff Rango. But he wasn't here either, and without him, they were completely lost in situations like these. The Dirtonians always needed someone to believe in. But now, the only ones who wasn't completely hysterical about the situation was Scrange, Blake and Priscilla. But there was no chance they would listen to Scrange, and Blake? Nah, that guy was definitely out of the question, for obvious reasons!

Priscilla groaned with a pained grimace when the realization hit her; SHE was the one who had to talk to the townspeople! She knew they weren't going to listen to her with the same respect they used to have, but at least it was worth a shot. She turned her head to an exceptionally large boulder and climbed up on it the get a view of whatever was left of the great hall. She drew a deep breath and whistled loudly, hoping to attract their attention. And luckily, that seemed to be enough for them to shut up and turn their heads her way. She held back a nervous gulp. Rango had always been the one doing the talking on front of the crowds. He was good at it, and anyone could tell he loved doing it too! Priss usually just kept herself in the background and kept an eye on things, she never was the one to speak to the crowd, and watching their confused and scared faces did nothing to make her nervousness go away.

"Oh boy..." She mumbled quietly before she cleared her throat to speak to the mass. "Umm... A-alright, folks! I know y'all are scared an' confused right now, trust me, I am too! But we... errm... W-we gotta try to remain calm! Panickin' won't solve ANY of our problems! There's a hatch in the roof which I doubt is air-tight, meanin' that we'll always have air in here so I doubt we'll die from that! But...!"

"But what if we starve to death?!"

"Or git sick?!"

And so the incoherent and hysterical murmur of half a towns inhabitants was sparked to life once again and Priss let out a restrained sigh.

"SHUT UP Y'ALL!" She shouted, hushing them down once again. "We AIN'T gonna die down here! I promise! I'll get us all outta here! Somehow!"

"An' how can we trust you on that?!" A random voice piped up, causing a wave of agreeing and suspicious nods to course through the crowd.

"Ya turned yer back on the town!"

"Ya turned yer back on us when we needed ya!"

"Ya don't even care 'bout us now, do ya?"

Priscilla staggered back and for a moment there she lost the ability to speak. But then she folded her arms across her chest and narrowed her round eyes. "Don't care? Tell me one thing, Mr Logan; if I didn't care 'bout y'all, what would I be doin' here, huh? If I didn't care I wouldn't even be standin' here! I would've just left y'all to yer fate an' go search for the emergency exit on my own!" The people blinked confoundedly at her when the word 'emergency exit' was mentioned. "I know, I did the wrong thing, but Dirt is, an' will always be, my home. Just as much as it's yer home too! I ain't just gonna stand here an' roll my thumbs 'til the others have defeated Jet an' can come to our rescue! We all need to get outta here, an' as soon as I'm out I'm gonna make go to Dirt an' help the others take our town back. So please, just give me a chance! One last chance, that's all I'm askin' for!"

The townspeople didn't answer her, they just exchanged worried and uncertain glances and whispered among themselves. Blake sighed and rolled his eyes. "Look here, ya bunch of cousin-humpers. This girl has been an angsty bitch ever since she left yer pitiful excuse for a town, the least ya can do is to hear her out, okay?" He said and ignored the wide-eyed stare he got from the young aye-aye.

"H-how do ya...?" She stuttered and didn't get to finish.

The rattlesnake cocked his head at her and raised an eyebrow. "I overheard Durango an' that mutt of yers talkin' 'bout ya right b'fore they left" He answered obviously and turned his head to the crowd again. "Ya really tell that looney everythin' that's on yer mind, don'tcha?" Priscilla gritted her teeth and didn't answer him.

"Just listen to me this one time, okay?" Priscilla said after a moment of silence and got the people to look up at her again. "Whatever y'all do: don't panic, b'cause we WILL get out! Jonas, who built this place, is cautious to the point of paranoid when it comes to protectin' his smuggling lair, or at least that's the impression I've got of him. An' I'm sure that he must've figured out that somethin' like this could happen an' made an emergency exit of some sort. The thing is just that I don't have any clue where it can be. Knowin' Jonas, he's probably hidden it well too. I'm gonna go look for it, an' I suggest if ya wanna get outta here faster, y'all better help! The more eyes to search, the better!"

She had barely finished the sentence until the townspeople broke up and scattered around the Nest to search for anything that could serve as an emergency exit. She drew a deep sigh of relief. Everything went a LOT better than she had expected!

…

Priscilla couldn't tell how long they had been searching, maybe an hour or so? Everyone who could walk had been joining in, the ones who couldn't was left behind to watch the kids. To everyones surprise, even Blake searched throughout the areas where he could fit.

"I ain't stayin' in 'ere with all these rednecks! No siree!" Had been his reply to Priscillas surprised expression.

But no matter their efforts, they still ended up with empty hands. No hidden doors or hatches anywhere. Nada. Zip. So their eyes turned once again to the young deputy, this time with doubt clearly written in their faces.

She was about to tell them all to not give up when they suddenly heard a mysterious scratching sound from the floor. Priscilla and the ones who happened to be armed, drew their guns and weapons while the children were shuffled away into safety in the corridors and Blake hissed warningly. The big rattler was NOT in the mood for more trouble right now!

But to everyones surprise, a familiar shiny black snakes head with large grass green eyes managed to break through the surface and looked around the area. When Coral saw that they were all unharmed, she drew a quiet sigh of relief and emerged completely, shaking the dirt off her coils.

"Well, aren't ya a sight for sore eyes, honey!" Blake chuckled jokingly. "Where's the others?"

Coral answered with first narrowing her eyes and hiss lowly at the rattlesnakes chuckle, and then she held her tailtip up, as if she was holding a gun, and made hoarse '_pew pew pew_' sounds.

"They're still fightin', huh?" Priscilla said and folded her arms in disappointment when Coral nodded. A part of her was by now so desperate to get out of this cave that she was even willing to accept being rescued in order to see the sunlight again! "Coral, we need to ask ya somethin'; do ya know if Jonas has an emergency exit in this Nest? An' if so, where?"

Coral furrowed her brows at she thought hard for a while. That old coot should have one, but where was a very hard question. She eventually had to give up with a shrug and a sad shake of her head. That caused a disappointed moan to murmur through the crowd of townspeople and Priscilla could once again sense how the tensity and worry began to rise among them again.

"Umm... Coral..." Priscilla asked again, quieter this time to make sure that the townspeople couldn't hear. "A-are Bentley with the others as well?" Coral nodded. "I-is he okay?"

Corals silence made Priscillas heart skip a beat. Eventually the tricolored snake sighed and shrugged. _Ya never know with that guy. Anythin' can happen when he's 'round!_

Not long after that, Blake, Coral, Scrange, Mrs Edwards and Priscilla (and Arrow as well) sat in Jonas' office, trying their best to remember someplace they might have forgotten to check. But after a slow rehearsal of the rooms, they realized that they had checked every square inch of the Nest. Even in everyones private sleeping quarters, including Jonas' own! They had checked all the bookshelves in his office as well to see if one of them might be hiding a staircase or something and removed the ginormous rug on the ground, but still nothing. They had to admit it; they were defeated. Turns out they had to wait for the others return. But who knows how long that would take? Sure, they still got air in through Thunder Wings closed hatch, but was that really enough for everyone that was locked up inside? Everyone plus Blake, who didn't exactly take small breaths compared to the others.

"I knew it" Mrs Edwards said with a low whimper as she hugged her arms around herself. "I knew it! I knew it was a bad idea to come 'ere! We should'a stayed on Ms Beans' ranch! We should never have left!"

"Oh shut up, ya whiner!" Blake snorted with a dangerously annoyed rattling of the rattle. "If ya don't quit that pitiful whimperin' I'll gobble ya an' yer entire family up, is that understood?!"

Before Mrs Edwards could reply, Coral slithered in between the kangaroo rat and the rattler, baring her fangs at him. _Giv'er a break, Blake! She's been through a lot more than ya have!_

"If there's one thing I can't stand, Coral, is whiners! Okay, there's a lot of things I can't stand, but whiners are certainly in the top five on my list!"

"Shut up, Blake..." Priscilla suddenly said as she kept staring intently at the big tapestry behind the desk.

Of course, Blake ignored her. "An' now you're kinda pissin' me off too, Coral! I've been down here for half an eternity an' I can't STAND this anymore! Ya have NO IDEA what it's like to be locked up 'ere with a bunch of dumbass inbreeds!"

"I said, SHUT UP, Blake!" Priscilla raised her voice, almost into a scream, and this got the rattlesnake to shut up and turn a pair of angry eyes at her, but she ignored them and continued to stare at the tapestry. Ridiculously big, deep blue and with three golden crowns embroidered on it, it certainly stood out in the room. But not too long ago, Priss had seen a slight movement behind it. After a while of intensely staring at it, and Blake almost losing his temper, she saw it again; a faint flutter, just by the bottom.

She quickly got up from the armchair she had been sitting in and ran up to the tapestry, rounding the desk. Scrange asked her what she saw, but she didn't reply. She kept staring at the tapestry; it was nailed both to the floor and to the roof, making it nearly impossible to move it around. Arrow tilted her head before walking up next to the aye-aye and joined in on the staring.

"Did...?" Priscilla began to ask after a few moments of creepy silence. "Did we ever look b'hind the tapestry?" Behind her, glances were exchanged.

"I thought you did it!" Scrange mumbled to Mrs Edwards.

The kangaroo rat hurried to shake her head. "No! I thought Mr Logan and his daughters did it! I mean, they were the ones who ran 'round in 'ere the most!"

Arrow slowly and suspiciously sneaked up to the tapestry and tilted her head at it again before jabbing her beak into the strong fabric. Behind it, a muffled sound of her beak hitting wood was heard. Blake heard in and his head perked up.

"Move it, bird!" He said and dashed through the room up to the door, not bothering about all the shelves and other furniture he crushed on his way forth. Without hesitation, he jabbed his one fang into one edge of the tapestry and yanked it down. A loud, ripping noise was heard as the fabric was torn of the wall and revealed a rather big door. At least it was big enough for Blake to fit through.

Mrs Edwards gasped happily. "Is that the...?"

"Only one way to find out!" Priss said as Blake tried to open the door by slamming himself into it, but he soon realized that it was too sturdy and wouldn't budge.

He cursed and withdrew. "Now what?!" His eyes went directly to Priscilla. "Is there a key or somethin'?!"

Priscilla gulped when she saw that everyone was looking at her now, hoping for her to give them an answer. All she could to was to shrug nervously. "I... I don't know..."

"Aw, to HELL with it!" Blake roared and lunged at the door once more. His weight made the sturdy door to creak and groan, but it wouldn't give in. "I wanna git outta 'ere, AN' YA AIN'T STOPPIN' ME, DOOR!" He hissed angrily and threw himself at the door once again, leaving the others to confusingly exchange looks and question their own hearing; did he really just talked to the door?

When the did refused to give in this time as well, Blake snarled and braced himself to lunge at the door for a third time. But right before he crashed in to the frame, Coral dashed, grabbed the handle with her tailtip and pulled the massive door open. Blakes angry snarl turned into a surprised yelp when he kept going and crash-landed in a dark tunnel. Coral stifled a chuckle.

"Really? Are ya kiddin' me?! REALLY?!" He spat out some moist soil that got into his mouth when he crashed. He turned his head back to the office and glared at Coral. "It was OPEN?!"

Coral quietly pointed with her tail at a minimal sized sign right above the handle: 'pull'.

Blake muttered something to himself and lowered his head in embarrassment when the others struggled harder and harder to keep themselves from chortling out a laugh. "I hate my life..."

Priscilla looked behind him into the tunnel, it was dark all the way through and they didn't see any light at the end. "Wonder if this is it?" She heard Mrs Edward say behind her.

"It gotta be..." She answered lowly, noticed an unlit torch on the wall near her and took it down. It was dusty and it was obvious that nobody had been in the tunnel for a long, long time. The air felt heavy and smelled old, and a sudden, chilly wind that coursed through the tunnel made them all shiver.

"Mrs Edwards?" Priscilla said and turned her head to the older kangaroo rat woman. "Can ya go fetch the others? We're followin' this tunnel, hopefully it'll lead us outta here!"

…

With the light from the torch Priscilla found, along with a bunch of lanterns, the townspeople, plus Blake, Coral, Scrange and Priscilla, slowly made their way through the dark, eerie tunnel. Using her torch, Priss also lit the rest of the unlit torches they passed, just in case.

When they finally saw light at the end, the once so whiny children, complaining loudly about their aching feet, cheered loudly and made a beeline for the exit, rushing past the adults and even passing the big rattlesnake in front. Blake muttered something about 'bloody brats' when they ran past him and out into the sunlight, even if he was the first of the adults to follow their example and almost knocked a few children to the ground when he slithered past as fast as he could.

When he felt the suns rays once again hit his long, scaly body, he laughed out in victory. "Once again, some moron has failed to keep me, Rattlesnake-Blake, locked up! Ahahaha!"

Priscilla recognized the divide they had emerged in; she and Bentley had passed here on their way to the aquifer. Relieved that she knew the way back, she turned around to the townspeople only to find that they were all staring at her. Again! She flinched and took a staggering step back.

"Ya really kept yer promise, huh?"

"Yeah, you said you'd git us all out, an' ya did!"

She was stumped with their sudden change of attitude towards her. Most of them had a smile of some sorts of their faces, but the ones who didn't smile didn't look especially hostile either. She realized that she was blushing and hurried to turn her back to the people to hide it. A nervous chuckle was all she could muster.

"W-well, I've never been much for breakin' my promises now, have I?" She hid her stupidly grinning mouth behind her hand and looked at the children, happy to be out of that scary underground facility, but then she noticed that someone was missing: Blake.

She frowned and looked around the area, but she couldn't see any signs of the giant snake. Only Coral was there, and she was emptily staring out into space. Priscilla followed her gaze and saw what it was Coral was looking at: smoke! Far, far away a big, black pillar of smoke reached towards the sky, no question about it: Bentleys plan worked. And Blake was hightailing it away from the townspeople and towards the town.

Priss turned back to the townspeople, who now as well had noticed the pillar of smoke and began to look anxious. "I'm gonna go back to the town now, an' I want y'all to go back to Beans' farm, it should be safe to hide there again now, since Jet an' his men are busy fightin' off the others" As she spoke to the crowd, she pointed with her entire hand at the direction to Beans' family ranch. "Mr an' Mrs Edwards? Are ya up for the role of the one in charge? An' make sure that ev'ryone, especially the children, gets back to safety?"

Matties mother pointed at herself in astonishment, even if Priss actually called them by their name. She thought for a while and exchanged glances with her husband, before they both nodded seriously. "Don't worry, deputy. We got it!" They said simultaneously.

When Priscilla was sure that the rest of the townspeople were in good hands, and to her surprise, got her old scarf back from Mrs Edwards, she left for Dirt. Coral had already decided to follow Blake a long time ago and the two snakes were long gone, probably half-way there by now. But after walking for a while, Priss felt someone nudge its feathery head against her back and a sharp beak scratched against the fabric on her borrowed shirt. She froze up and turned around, finding herself eye-to-eye with Arrow. The black bird studied her with her round, yellow eyes before making a low, purring sound.

Priss took a step back. "A-Arrow? What're ya...?" The roadrunner shook her head from side to side and turned her left side to the aye-aye, squawking and motioning with her head at her back. Priscilla frowned when she realized what the bird was trying to tell her and shook her head. "No Arrow, I can't ride ya. You're hurt! Besides, Rango's gonna kill me if he finds out!"

The roadrunner raised the plume on her head and narrowed her eyes. She wasn't going to take no for an answer, and when she made that clear Priscilla, Dirts deputy couldn't do more than to grimace and climb up on the still wounded roadrunner. Arrow took a staggering step to the side and Priscilla was about to quickly get down again when the bird regained her balance and began to trot away towards what was left of Dirt. Priss still wasn't convinced that Arrow was fit to be ridden right now, seeing as she got shot just a couple of days ago by Jake, but she'd rather be facing Rangos fury than to argue with this bird.

Besides, Bentley still deserved a punch to the face! Both for tricking her into getting locked up, and for telling Rango all those things! And the sooner she could deliver that punch and get it over with, the better!

… **I think Priscilla and Bentley has some things to discuss in the next chappie xD**

**Anyway, this chapter feels a bit short and rushed, sorry about that :/... Oh well, next chappie will be better, I hope xD!**


	60. A Small Victory

**I think I was right when this I guessed that this story would end at 70- something chapters o_O... **

***** Chapter Sixty : A Small Victory *****

Blake had gotten quite far by the time Coral caught up with him. When she popped her head up above the sand right next to him, he had yelped and rather ungracefully and undignified thrown himself to the side.

"Whaddya want, Coral?" He said, but then quickly changed his mind and held up his rattle in front of her as a gesture to be quiet. "Or wait, never mind! I forgot ya can't talk!"

Coral frowned and snorted, but let the comment pass as she pointed with her tail at the bullet holes in Blakes body, covered by bandages. He tilted his head confusedly and looked down.

"Oh, those" He shrugged. "They'll heal, they hardly even hurt anymore. Now, if you'll excuse me I've gotta get to that god damn town!" He began slithering away, but then he stopped and turned back around to Coral. "Umm, where are ya goin' by the way? To the town?"

Coral nodded.

"So..." He paused. "Are ya here to follow me or stop me?"

Coral averted her eyes for a couple of beats, as if she was trying to make up her mind, before she completely emerged from the ground and slithered towards the town, nodding to the rattler to get going.

"So, ya wanna follow me, huh?" Blake frowned and looked around to make sure no one was around. "Why are ya doin' this?"

Coral stopped and turned her head around and looked at Blake with her head tilted in confusion.

"Why are ya just, not tryin' to kill me? I know I would've!" Blake looked around a second time, he really didn't want to talk about this, but Jolene had been right: he had to say this to Coral. He hated when Jolene was right. "Look, I agree; I AM a bastard! An' it's what I am an' what I'm known for! I HAD to do what I did to keep that image, or else people would think that I gotten soft for another! An' soft equals weak!"

Corals heart skipped a beat. _Gotten soft for another?_ She knew it was naïve and childish to hope that he might just have said that he had liked her, but still...

"I knew I hurt ya, I hurt ya BAD! An' Durango really wanna git my neck for it, but why don't ya? I heard ya saved me by getting' me those herbs, but why? I just wanna know, why? Ya hate me, dont'cha? I mean, you SHOULD hate me!"

Coral averted her eyes and a faint blush became visible on her cheeks. _I don't know_... She shrugged carefully and continued to slither away again. When Blake caught up to her, she tried her best to hide how tense she got.

"Coral... Thanks! An' I'm sorry! I mean it this time!" He said without looking at her, obviously ashamed of saying both the T and the S-word. She looked down at the ground and smiled faintly.

...

Jet had lost, and he knew it. All he could think of while trying to sneak away from the war-zone was of how naïve he had been. How had he NOT seen something like this coming?! He should have been prepared for a battle as soon as the news of Rangos survival reached his ears. He shouldn't have expected the bountyhunter to attack in his usual pattern. He shouldn't have underestimated them.

His coat was ripped and charred by the fire and he had dropped his hat a long time ago, but he was too busy fleeing for his life to notice. Once again he cursed his foolishness and managed to hide behind a corner just as a group of Dirtonians ran past. He waited until they were completely gone before he poked his head around the corner and looked. The coast was clear, so he continued his escape from the burning town of Dirt.

Both the Gajerra brothers were nowhere to be seen either, he hadn't seen or heard anything from them since the fire broke out on main street. Those two psychos must either have skedaddled or perished. Jet was sincerely hoping for the last. They had been a real nightmare to deal with, even if he'd rather have them on his side than against him! They would always be so brutal and merciless, doing whatever they wanted to do, it was a miracle that he managed to stop them both from brutally killing the deputy that time! They really were complete psychos, weren't they?!

The sudden, repetitive sound of Jakes gatlin-rattle firing a round of shots woke Jet up from his thoughts and made him stop dead in his tracks in the middle of the alley he was following. That sounded dangerously close, so the gunslinger snake had to be nearby. Jet hid behind an old trashcan while he rethought a new escape route. He now began to know how Rango felt whenever a plan went to hell.

_The fastest route out of here would definitely be the alley down to the left, and if I follow that I'll end up by the lake in no time and from there I'll just head west out of here! Haha!_ He thought to himself while the sound of gunshots, screams and the roaring fire echoed around him. _But I have to be careful! Can't just go on about and run head over heels, I have to be sneaky! They are all probably too busy with the fight to notice if I go down THAT way! But wasn't that where I heard Jakes gun just now? Damn it... I can't just improvise either, I HAVE to be careful!_

When the most action had simmered down and moved on, he slowly got up from his hiding spot and continued down the streets and alleyways he had marked out in his mind. By carefully navigating the town, and always make sure to have a hiding spot nearby if anyone would happen to pass, he managed to get to the lake. He held the gleeful laugh inside him at bay as he ran as fast as he could around the lake. Far away, the sun was setting and it would probably have been reflecting in the water if it hadn't been for all the fire and the smoke that occupied the bigger part of the surface. Once he was safely on the other side of the lake, and ran an additional distance for good measures, he finally slowed down and turned around with a victorious smirk. He had done it! He had gotten away! And he was undamaged! Well, except for the coat, which was more or less ruined by now.

He mumbled sadly to himself and tried to brush of the worst soot and dirt from the once colorful coat, but to no use: it had been shredded and the fire had burned several holes in the material. Suddenly, as he walked with his attention focused on his coat, he felt himself walk into something. Something big and scaly. His heart picked up the pace as he slowly looked up and came face to face with two pair of eyes: one bright, grassy green, and one the same color as fire.

The owner of the fiery eyes grinned, revealing that one of his fangs were missing and replaced by a big, red hole. "Hey, you're that troublesome raccoon, aint'cha?"

Jet winced. "Oh crap..."

…

It hadn't taken many hours before Jets men were either dead, scared off or tied up while most of the Dirtonians were more or less unscathed. Of course, there were some hurt and two had unfortunately died, but their small victory was joyful and they cheered loudly, that is until they saw the destruction of their beloved town with new eyes. Someone was even weeping as he watched the mayors house crumble to dust, devoured by the fire. Sure they had won, but their town was worse off now than it had been during the drought! It was a small victory indeed.

Beans' dress was tattered and at one point it even caught fire and left a big, black hole down by the skirt, but she herself was unhurt and the first thing she did since she heard the news of their success was to search for Rango, the sheriff. She found him by the lake, his hat was missing and he had a deep gash on his forehead, but other than that and a few other bruises, he had also gotten unscathed out of the brawl. He watched the town burn with a sad look on his face and Beans could swear she saw tears in his eyes.

"Rango?" She carefully touched his hand, but he hardly even budged from the spot or even turn his head.

"The town is gone... Dirt is gone..." He said without emotion in his voice, still staring at the town. "It's ruined... We're gonna have to rebuild everything..." Yes, he had only been living in Dirt for ten years, but it hadn't took long until he was as attached to the little sleepy town as the ones who had lived there their entire life. Watching it perish underneath the massive flames and the thick, black smoke was painful to him. So many memories in one single place, gone in just a matter of hours.

Beans didn't answer him immediately, instead she intertwined her fingers with his and leaned her head against his. "Yeah..." She eventually said with a sigh. "But we, the people, are still 'ere. We'll have Dirt back in no time flat!"

Rango slowly smile an askew smile. "You're probably right on that one, Beans" He chuckled and held her hand tighter.

Further away, the other Rango stood with his arms crossed and watched the two lizards with an amused smirk. Next to him was Jake, who had been hit by a bullet in his side. But since it was non-lethal and barely bleeding at all, he decided to leave it unattended for now.

"I'm surprised" The basilisk eventually said and chuckled. "That guy was actually kinda brave back there, an' he saved us both from a very tricky situation"

"I told ya not to underestimate him." Jakes mouth curled up in a smirk. "He actually pointed a gun at me without flinchin' once, being the second one to do that."

"Wait, ya mean that I'm the only one who ever did that b'fore?"

"Yeah, although last year there was this skunk who drew at me, but he was drunker than a pirate an' had no idea who he messed with" The two outlaws were quiet once again, just watching the burning town as the fire finally showed signs of simmering down.

After a moment of silence, the bountyhunter grimaced and scratched his neck. "Am I the only one who actually feels bad for the town? I mean, look at it! It's fucked!"

"Yes."

"Of course, but then again it wasn't one of YER men who decided to lit the entire god damn thing on fire either!"

"Nope"

"Wonder if my guys would agree to help rebuildin' the town?"

Jake flinched and stared down at the basilisk in disbelief. Rango felt the snake stare at him and stared back, causing the snake to burst out laughing after a while. "HAH! Good one, Durango! Ya almost had me there!"

"What?"

"What? Whaddya mean 'what'? Ya weren't serious, were ya?"

"Of course I am!"

"Oh hell no!"

"What? It's thanks to me an' my men their town looks like a camping trip gone wrong! The least we can do is to sacrifice our pride an' a few of our days to help them rebuild some parts of the town!"

"... Ya ARE serious?"

"God damn it, Jake! Are ya in denial or somethin'? I may be a rotten stone killer, but I DO have a conscience sometimes, an' now my conscience tells me to repay the town an', so god help me, repay it I shall!"

"... You're still kiddin' me, aren't ya?"

"Oh drop dead, ya overgrown handbag!"

The two reptiles conversation was interrupted when Hicks walked up to them with a bitter frown on his face. "Rango, ya got a moment?"

"What's wrong, Hicks?"

"It's Jet an' the Gajerras. There are no signs of 'em anywhere, we've been searchin' ev'rywhere but we just can't find 'em!" Rango and Jake frowned.

"Think they might have died in the fire?" Jake cocked his head slightly at Rango, who shook his head in response.

"No, not those three. They are way too good for that"

"You're right, Rang-Rang, or at least one of 'em made it out safely!" Blakes voice made them all jump in surprise. The sand-colored rattler was slithering towards them with something in his coils, next to him was Coral slithering above the surface, for once. With a low grunt, Blake uncoiled and threw a severely beat up and unconscious Jet on the ground. "Voilá! A big jackass, size extra large with extra dumbassery on the side, just as ordered!" Coral tried to stifle a hoarse laughter, causing Blakes grin to widen even further.

Rango raised an eyebrow at the youngest rattler. _Wait, what have I missed?_

"What're ya doin' 'ere, Blake?" Jake snarled. "I told ya to stay in that Nest!"

"Uh yeah, only one thing though; someone fuckin' blew up the entrance an' locked me up with a whole town of rednecks!"

Rango frowned. "Someone blew up the entrance?!"

"Wait, look over there!" Hicks suddenly said and pointed at the direction from which Blake and Coral just came from. Even sheriff Rango and Beans heard the coyote and they curiously turned around and squinted their eyes towards the horizon. Two figures slowly came walking towards them, a roadrunner and next to her was a familiar, big-eyed face.

"Is that... Priscilla? And Arrow?!" The bountyhunters eyes widened. "An' Arrow ain't tryin' to kill her?!"

"I'm just as stumped as you are!" Sheriff Rango said and suddenly stood right next to the bountyhunter.

The other Rango flinched and jumped to the side. "What the...? DON'T sneak up on me, you freak!"

"Sorry..."

When Priscilla and Arrow arrived, Rango the bountyhunter instantly jumped in front of her. She flinched and thought he was going to go all crazy because of Arrow, but to her surprise he just simply asked: "Who blew up the Nest?!"

She shrugged. "I dunno, in fact none of us knows. Blake suddenly heard voices an' a fuse bein' lit outside an' b'fore we knew it, half of the hall had caved in" She saw the sheriff and Beans' worried faces and hurried to add: "Luckily no one got hurt, though. But it was close!" Suddenly she saw just the person she was looking for, standing closer to the town and seemed to be joking around with Caleb and Mongo. She gritted her teeth angrily and marched past the small group by the lake. "If you'll just excuse me for a moment, I gotta... 'talk' to someone"

Rango saw her march straight up to Bentley and flinched. "Ooh, he is SO gonna regret he did that!" He said, earning a slightly confused look from everyone else except Blake.

"What?" The sheriff asked confusedly. "What did he do?"

"Let me put it like this; did ya really believe him when he said that Priscilla stayed b'hind voluntarily, JUST b'cause she's got a wounded shoulder?" He arched an invisible eyebrow at the chameleon, who frowned and shook his head. "I thought so, y'see b'fore I left I had a lil' talk with Bentley..." The bountyhunter paused as the loud sound of Bentley getting punched in the face and fall to the ground was heard, shortly followed by a hysterical laughter from Caleb. "Where was I? Oh yeah! An' Bentley told me the truth; he was concerned 'bout her safety an' decided to lock her up in an empty room. Needless to say, it seems like she didn't approve of the treatment" He chuckled and watched the furious aye-aye take out her anger at the overly caring hyena. "Let her git it outta her system" He said and stopped Hicks, who was about to walk up and break up the (very one-sided) fight. "He actually only got himself to blame for this, y'know"

…

Bentley, Caleb and Mongo had been talking when Priscilla arrived, or at least Bentley and Caleb was; Mongo was just listening with an amused grin to their conversation. The two was joking about and suddenly they got into the subject of Bentleys spontaneous idea to propose to Priss.

"So, in theory, if I ask Prissy to marry me t'day, ya think she would say yes? Just theoretically speakin'!" Bentley was leaning his elbows on a crate full of water bottles as he spoke.

"Out of all people to ask, you're askin' ME?" Caleb frowned and pointed at himself. "I honestly don't care that much, but I just think that if ya wanna ask her, just fuckin' do it! Don't talk with me 'bout it, 'cause I sure as hell ain't gonna marry you, B!"

"I just dunno, I've known her for just a couple of weeks, literally!" He scratched the back of one of his large, pointy ears and grimaced. "What if she thinks I'm a freaky, obsessive weirdo for askin' 'er so soon?"

"Once again, why are you askin' me all these things?! Yes! You ARE a freaky weirdo, especially now when you talk like this! What's wrong with ya, B?!"

"Hell, where do I start?"

"I mean, what's WRONG with ya?! You are aware that it's HER you're losin' it 'bout? Priscilla the Queen of Whores!"

"Hey! Stop callin' her that! Why're ya so mean to her all the time?! You KNOW damn well my Prissy ain't no whore!"

"I know, but it's just so fun! Ya have any idea how much you freak out when I call her that?" Caleb smirked and folded his arms. "You're hilariously hypocritical sometimes, B. You're jokin' 'bout ev'rythin' an' mocks ev'ryone you meet, but when I'm putting 'Priscilla' and 'harlot' into the same category, ya b'come all apeshit!" Bentley didn't reply, he just pouted and stubbornly crossed his arms. Suddenly Caleb perked up and grinned even wider. "Speakin' of the slut, here she comes!" Bentleys ears perked up as well and he turned his head, a happy grin spread on his face when he saw 'his girl' come marching towards them with furious strides. But Calebs grin faded off. "Uh-oh..."

"Eh?" Bentley averted his eyes to look at the teen. "Whaddya mean 'uh-oh'?"

"You're noticing that she's makin' a beeline straight at us, right?"

"Yup!"

"And right now she removes her right arm out of the sling?"

"Yup!"

"She's ballin' her fist and rollin' up her sleeves?"

"Yup!"

"A quick question: does she grit her teeth and snarl when she's angry?"

"Yeah, why?"

"B, I think you should run..."

"Why?"

"B'cause she's snarlin' at ya and it looks like she's bracin' herself for somethin'"

"Oh..."

"Too late!"

Priss quickly made her way up to them, Mongo hurried to close his eyes as he already could tell what was going to happen. Bentley grinned sheepishly and threw his arms out, like he was going to hug her. "Hi, Prissy! Great timin'! We're just done with defeatin' the bad guys an' savin' the town! Or what's left of it!" He gulped when she got closer and raised her balled fist. He tried to take a step back. "Prissy...?"

She must have mustered every single ounce of power in her entire body for that punch, because she managed to sock the 220 pound hyena to the ground. He was stunned for a couple of beats, while Caleb burst out laughing and Mongo facepalmed.

"You!" The furious and bonechilling tone in her voice made him slowly look up at her. One look at her enraged face was enough for him to curl up on the side and cover his head with his hands.

"S-sorry! I'm sorry, Prissy! I-I just wanna...!"

"You! Y-you asshole! You bastard son of a gun!" She paced back and forth while throwing her cursing fit right at him. "You stupid mongrel! Why?! Why won't you trust me?"

He peeked through his fingers. "I-I just didn't want'cha to get hurt, Prissy!" He whimpered. "I'm sorry!"

"Nobody locks me up like that! NOBODY! Not even YOU!"

"Prissy, please...!"

"An' not only that, what the hell do ya mean 'angsty bitch'?! YOU TOLD RANGO I'VE BEEN AN 'ANGSTY BITCH'?!"

"What?! No! I've never...!"

"But you told Rango I felt bad for leavin' the town, didn'tcha!? Ya told him ev'rythin', didnt'cha?!"

"Y-yeah, he didn't believe me when I said ya wanna stay b'hind, s-so he told me to tell him the truth or he would go lookin' for ya an' let you out!"

"Why you big...!"

"WAIT! I-I'm sorry! I-I told him that I locked ya up for yer own sake, and I must've kinda told him that ya told me t-that ya were scared of not gettin' accepted in Dirt again. But I didn't tell him ev'rythin' an' I didn't call ya an angsty bitch!"

"WHY did ya do that to me, Bentley?! Why?!"

"I... I'm sorry, I just didn't wanna see ya get hurt, again!"

"Why not just have some faith in me for ONCE!? It's my job to protect this town, NOT yer!" She had bring up whatever little self control she had left to not just throw another punch or a kick at the scared hyena. She couldn't remember the last time she had been this furious at another person. ""I don't need ANYONE to protect me! I can take care of myself! I've always been able to take care of myself! I don't need anyone! Not even you!"

"Prissy, how many times do I have to say that I'm sorry?! P-please don't be so mad!"

"Don't be so mad?! DON'T BE SO MAD?! First ya trick me an' lock me up in some dark, empty room 'for my own safety', then ya tell Rango I've been a guilt-ridden wreck since I left the town an' now ya tell me to NOT be mad?! Y-you! YOU...! AURGH!" Without anywhere else to turn, she threw the next punch into Calebs face, who had been busy laughing his ass off to see it coming.

The hit made him stagger back and eventually fall on his rear. He gawked at her in surprise and rubbed his chin where she had hit him. "You crazy bitch!" He said as she turned her back to him and Bentley and stormed off into the town. "What the HELL was that for, you lunatic!?"

Bentley slowly sat upright and watched Priscilla stomp away along the ruined streets. "P-Prissy?" His ears drooped. "She's really mad, isn't she?"

Caleb snarled and got up on his feet while still rubbing his aching face. "One word: PMS! You might wanna hold that proposal, B, somethin' tells me she'd rather castrate you than marry you right now!"

Bentley replied with a faint whimper and waited before he scrambled to his feet. Priscilla had vanished into a side street and was no longer within sight. He hesitated for a moment, before he winced and decided to run after her. Caleb rolled his eyes and glared at Mongo.

"Thanks for the heads-up, big guy! You could've told me she was 'bout to sock me in the face!" Caleb snorted. Mongo frowned and growled something in return. "Whaddya mean I probably deserved it?! I've saved that crazy wench' life three times!" He paused when he saw that Priscillas little verbal outburst had attracted a LOT of attention, and everyone was currently watching them with curious looks on their faces. "And what're y'all gawkin' at, uglies?!"

…

When Bentley caught up to her, he found her standing in front of a small building, probably someones house. Someones very small house. Even if it was in relative good condition, considering the way the rest of the town looked now, it still looked like it had been hit by a bomb, literally! One half seemed to have been blown away and the damaged walls looked ready to crumble down any second. Priscilla was staring as in trance at the house, but when she heard Bentley stalking closer, she turned her head and looked at him. He flinched and came to a complete stop, expecting her to restart her raging fit, but she didn't. Instead she just sighed and turned her attention back to the house again.

Bentley blinked in confusion and carefully walked up to her. "Prissy?"

"I'm sorry, Bentley" She said lowly, adding on to his confusion. "I didn't mean to get so mad at'cha..."

"Uh... I... It's okay, Prissy... I-I didn't..." He was stumped by her sudden change and struggled to find the right words. He had prepared an 'I'm-sorry-please-don't-hate-me'-speech, but now he hesitated. "I-I didn't mean to make ya so mad, I just... Yer shoulder... I was thinkin' that... I'm sorry..."

Priss looked down at the ground. She was still angry, and slightly hurt, over have been treated like some fragile child who had to be locked up for her own safety. Sure, his intentions had been good, but sometimes he worried far too much and it was getting on her nerves. She glanced up at him, now standing next to her, and noticed that he seemed tense, and his eyes occasionally flicked down to look at her. "Relax, I ain't gonna start shoutin' at'cha again"

He didn't answer her, but on the inside he made a sigh of relief. He turned back to the house and tilted his head. "So, ya know someone who lives here? Or, I mean, lived?"

"Yeah, I did..." She answered without skipping a beat, earning a surprised look from Bentley.

"YOU did?"

"Yeah, I rented it from the Edwards an' moved here as soon as I got my first paycheck" She raised an eyebrow at Bentleys surprised face. "What? Ya didn't think I really lived in the hotel with y'all, did'cha?"

He shrugged in response. "Nah, not really..." He mumbled and scratched the back of his neck and picked out some fragments of soot from his mane. He tilted his head at the other side and blinked, before walking up to the door. It's hinges had been blown off, so he barely had to touch it to accidentally making it fall to the floor. He lowered his head, looked at her from the corner of his eye and chuckled nervously. "Sorry 'bout that, Prissy!"

She smirked and rolled her eyes as she brushed past him through the door and stepped over the threshold for the first time in a very long time. It was just as small on the inside as it looked on the outside, and the narrow hallway almost gave Bentley claustrophobia. It had been quite messy from the beginning, as she hardly had any time to clean, but since the house apparently got hit by a cannon, or a dynamite went off nearby, it looked like a war zone. Literally. It was dusty, sooty and the few furniture she owned had all been damaged to some degree and debris covered the floor.

Priss didn't hesitate and walked right through the door to the left (in fact, the only door in the entire house), shortly followed by Bentley. She walked over to her bed, which was covered in a thick layer of dust and splinters and dove in under it, while Bentley went to flip a drawer back upright. As he turned the fallen over drawer up again, he heard something crunch under his foot and jumped up, afraid he just destroyed something of hers.

Priscilla found what she was searching for and pulled it out under the bed; a big suitcase. She hurried to open it and drew a relieved sigh when she saw that the revolvers in it were undamaged. Three pairs of revolvers, spotless and shining, were resting in the suitcase and there were an additional two holes were her current pair would fit. She put them back and instead she picked out a pair of Colt Navies and holstered them before closing the suitcase and pushing it back under the bed. Just as she stood up, she heard Bentley chortle out a laugh and turn to her with a wide smirk on his face. In his hand he held an old, dusty frame with a cracked glass.

"So, where are you in this pic?" He asked and held up the picture of a school class, probably no older than ten years old.

She winced as she located the little girl in black and white school dress and two long braids with black hair. "Front row to the far left" She answered, she had completely forgotten about that picture!

Bentley tilted his head, found her and laughed again. "Of course! D'aww look at those braids! Adorable!"

Priscilla frowned and cocked her head at him. "Knock it off, Bentley!"

"I mean it! This is adorable!" Suddenly his head perked up and he stared at her with a sly, mischievous grin.

She instantly could tell that he was going to show it to the rest of the gang. "No! Bentley, NO!" She protested when he quickly stuffed the frame in his coat and bolted out of the house. "Get back here!" She snarled and followed him out. She didn't know if he really was going to show the picture to the others, or if he was just teasing with her, but she couldn't take any chances.

She saw him running down the street, laughing maniacally while doing so, and she immediately bolted after him. For a moment she considered drawing her gun. But she had barely caught up to him when she saw a movement on her side and just as she turned her head, her eyes met a familiar and very frightening pair of icy blue ones. The scream of fear she couldn't stop from leaving her lips was cut off short when he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her into the narrow alley between two larger buildings. The speed gained them moment as he swung her around, slamming her back against the house wall and sent a new, quick jolt of pain into her shoulder. She barely had time to blink before she felt the cold steel of his knife press against her throat.

"Go ahead, scream. Scream an' I'll cut yer head clean off!" He snarled, his cold eyes made the blood in her veins freeze up and her heart began beating as mad in her chest. His clothes were tattered and burned badly, even his skin had been burnt at some places, especially on his arms. But despite being injured, he didn't seem to care about his burns at all as he kept glaring down threateningly at Priscilla, and pressed his blade harder against her throat.

"P-Pancho?" She winced and tried to swallow the lump of fear that formed in her chest. "W-whaddya want?"

"I wanna know how ya could've survived that fall!"

"T-the fall? I-I was saved... I think..."

"Where's my brother?"

Priscilla blinked and tried to stop herself from shaking as the blade was pressed deeper into her skin. "F-Francisco?"

"WHERE'S HE?!"

"I-I don't... I don't know! N-no one's seen him! Or you, for that matter!"

Pancho didn't reply for a while, but then he removed his knife from her throat. "Too bad. That asshole left me t'die in that inferno, I'm gon' kill 'im as soon as I find 'im..." She winced and as soon as the knife was moved, she tried to flee by dashing to the side, but his hand slammed into the wall and stopped her. "I didn't tell ya you could leave!" He snarled and narrowed his eyes. "Don't make me kill ya too!"

"But that's what ya want, ain't it?" She bit her lip to stop it from trembling as she pressed her back against the wall in an attempt to get further away from him. Her fingers touched the handles of her guns, she intended to draw them and shoot as soon as the opportunity rises. IF the opportunity rises, that is.

"Maybe..." Pancho answered lowly. "But not now..."

"Why not?"

"Ya want me t'kill ya now?"

"N-no..."

"Then shut yer mouth!"

Meanwhile, Bentley had been running for a while, but had to stop when he couldn't hear her running behind him. He panted heavily and kept chuckling between every breath, but his smile vanished when he saw that the street behind him was empty and his heart skipped a beat. "Prissy?"

Priscilla tried to calm herself down, tried to mask her fear, but the Komodo dragons unnaturally blue eyes made her want to just scream in terror and she could swear even he heard her heartbeats. "W-what do ya want?" She asked with a low, shaking voice and tried to avert her eyes. "If ya don't wanna kill me, why not just let me go?"

"'Cause I want ya to do somethin' for me"

"An' what makes ya think I wanna help you?"

"'Cause ya owe yer life to me, princess!" He snarled and leaned closer. "You're alive right now jus' 'cause I saved yer life back there"

"What? No, ya tried to shoot me!" _But you missed, ya blind piece of shit..._

Pancho chuckled, a cold, grim sound, and bared his razor sharp fangs in an evil grin. "If it would've been Franko doin' th'shootin', I'd guarantee ya'd be dead as a doornail by now" He lifted his knife up to her face, the tip barely touched her as he ran it along her cheek up to the bullet-gash. "Seems like I hit where I aimed, fer once..." He mumbled to himself.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she refused to believe him. The Gajerra brothers were notorious for showing no mercy to anyone, period. So it didn't make any sense; why would Pancho, the cruelest of the two, suddenly decide to spare her? He hated her, didn't he? "If you're speakin' the truth, then why would ya do that?" The giant, black lizard didn't answer. "Why save me?"

Pancho was quiet for a while, before he curled his mouth up in another creepy grin. "For starters, no lass one has ever lit me face on fire b'fore. Or hit Franko straight in the mug with a plate!"

She could tell that he was amused by the memories, but the way he spoke to her now made her cringe with even more fear. She bit her lip harder and tried to calm herself down again before she spoke. "So, what is it that ya want me to do, then?"

The giant lizard opened his mouth to speak, but just then Bentley walked right by the alley, calling for Priscilla.

"Prissy? I'm sorry! I wasn't gonna show it to the others, I was just messin' 'round! Come out now, okay? You're creepin' me out!"

Pancho cursed and bolted, disappearing into the alley in just a matter of seconds. Priscilla was still standing, leaning back against the brick wall and breathed heavily as her heart kept pumping adrenaline to her brain. Bentley passed the alley, saw her and laughed victoriously.

"Hah! I found ya!" But then he noticed that something was wrong and slightly tilted his head with a concerned frown. "Prissy?"

"P-Pancho is here..." Priscilla replied and placed her palm on her forehead, leaning her head back against the bricks as well. "Pancho Gajerra is still alive!"

Bentley was right by her side within the blink of an eye and looked around, his ears were flattened and the mane on his neck stood straight out. "Where?" He growled and bared his fangs. "Where is he?!"

"He was here, he bolted when he heard ya callin'..." She shook her head. "Don't bother, Bentley! C'mon, we should just go an' tell the others..."

"Did he hurt ya?"

"Not really, but..." Her voice threatened to break so she interrupted herself. "But he claims I've got a debt to him..."

"Ya don't owe him shit!" He turned back at her and allowed himself to relax a bit and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are ya okay, Prissy?"

She nodded. "Just a lil' shaky, that's all..." He let his entire arm snake its way around her shoulders and pulled her close to him. "But I'm alright, really! He just scared me a bit"

Bentley didn't respond for a while. "As long as the Gajerras are still out there, I ain't lettin' ya outta my sight from now on..." He mumbled and leaned his chin against her head.

"Bentley, don't start again!"

"I mean it! I'm sick of ya gettin' into trouble as soon as I turn my back! Sure, we might have defeated Jet an' his men, but as long as the Gajerras are still at large, we're ALL in trouble!" He winced and hugged her one more time with the arm around her shoulders. "You're right, we have to tell the others!"

She didn't answer, instead she was thinking back at the fear she felt by just coming face to face with him. It had numbed her, almost paralyzed her! And she who just had been shouting at Bentley for not taking her independence seriously. Hah! What a joke! She felt her pride go down the drain right there and then when she leaned her head against Bentleys chest and stifled a sob. He blinked in confusion at her, before he threw both of his arms around her and leaned his head against hers.

Pancho would be back soon, and she knew it. And a new meeting with the Gajerra wasn't all too appealing to her. In fact, she felt the fear return when she thought about it. He had told her that she owed her life to him, and he was dead-set on her repaying that favor. But he had never gotten around to tell her what is was she had to do, and frankly, she didn't want to know!

Priss cursed herself when she realized what she was doing. Instead of just shooting that good for nothing Komodo dragon right there when she had the chance and get the problem over with, she had just stood there like a wimp, paralyzed with fear for his icy eyes. And now when he had run off, instead of keeping it cool and gather up the others to hunt the bastard and his twin down, like she'd normally do, she now instead stood in the arms of an insane outlaw hyena, letting him try to calm her down as she pressed her face into his chest and shuddered like a frightened child.

She had grown soft.

***Sighs and shakes my head* No, Prissy. You've attained a little something called; 'emotions'. Ever heard of those before? Lol xD  
**

**Lol, anyway I don't know when the next chapter will be out, and I'll try to finish the next TLO chapter by tomorrow or something ^^! See y'all then!**


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